Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali has said that Gary Kirsten stepped down from his coaching role at the right time, even while maintaining that he made unreasonable demands during his tenure that the Pakistan Cricket Board couldn’t have fulfilled. Gary Kirsten resigned six months into his role as Pakistan’s white-ball coach, during which Pakistan exited the T20 World Cup in the group stage.
A former Pakistan cricketer feels that Gary Kirsten wanted a different captain for the white-ball team, but the PCB chief didn’t take his advice. During Gary Kirsten’s tenure, Pakistan lost the T20I series against England and also got eliminated from the group stage of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024.
Pakistan Cricket Board under scanner after Gary Kirsten’s resignation as white ball coach for Pakistan ahead of Aus tour 2024
Gary Kirsten’s resignation comes only after barely six months into his appointment as head coach for the Pakistan cricket team. As per reports, Gary Kirsten was in disagreement with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) over selection of the team and announcement of the squad for the upcoming series against Australia and Zimbabwe. The rift worsened as reportedly PCB did not take Gary Kirsten’s suggestions on the squad into account, which led to his decision to party ways from head coach post.
The former South African batter, who won the ODI World Cup as head coach of the Indian men’s cricket team and took South Africa to No. 1 position in all three formats of the game during his time with the Proteas, joined the Pakistan team as white-ball head coach in April 2024, but his tenure could last only six months.
There were reports of differences between him and Pakistani players, and he also wasn’t happy with the recent changes in Pakistan cricket set-up.
Pakistan Cricket Board has been under the scanners again after Gary Kirsten resigned from the men’s white-ball head coach position. There was some elation in the Pakistan cricket camp after the team registered a 2-1 series win over England at home, but it lasted only a few days as Gary Kirsten dropped a bombshell and parted ways with the team. The PCB also accepted Gary Kirsten’s resignation without making much fuss about it.
The 56-year-old South African, who coached India to victory at the 2011 ODI World, was appointed by the PCB at the end of April of this year. However, things didn’t turn out as planned for him as Pakistan were knocked out of the T20 World Cup in the group stage. Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali has scathingly attacked PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi and claimed that Kirsten left the position because he raised his voice about something that was not going right.
Basit Ali Launches Angry Rant Against Pakistan Cricket Board and Gary Kirsten
Former Pakistani batter Basit Ali has slammed Gary Kirsten for making unreasonable demands during his tenure as the Men in Green’s white-ball coach. Kirsten, who was given a two-year contract earlier this year, resigned just six months into the role.
Basit Ali suggested that Kirsten had maintained that he would not coach Pakistan if Babar Azam was not part of the team. He also reckoned that the former South African cricketer wanted young keeper-batter Mohammad Haris to be the new white-ball captain following Babar’s exit.
Speaking in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Basit Ali said :
“Gary Kirsten is acting very innocent now. How can you say that I will not coach the team if Babar Azam is not there? How can you do that just for an individual? You wanted to make Mohammad Haris the captain. Why should we listen to you? Did you go to the Emerging Teams Asia Cup to see Haris? Let that kid play, why are you doing such injustice with him? You just watched the Emerging Teams Asia Cup on television.”
Basit Ali further stated that Kirsten was not in favor of Mohammad Rizwan getting the captaincy in ODIs and T20Is. He also alleged that the veteran coach didn’t want pace spearhead Shaheen Afridi in the side, adding :
“Gary Kirsten did not Mohammad Rizwan to be the captain and Shaheen Afridi to be in the team. Is this Pakistan’s team or Gary Kirsten’s team? He got a shut-up call from Aaqib Javed.”
Gary Kirsten had a dismal run with the Pakistan team. During his tenure, the team suffered a T20I series defeat to England and a group-stage exit at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Basit Ali on Gary Kirsten’s resignation
Basit Ali opined that Gary Kirsten was spot on with the timing of his resignation. He remarked that there are a lot of politics going on within Pakistan cricket and the future doesn’t seem to be bright.
The cricketer-turned-expert said in the aforementioned video :
“He stepped down at the right time. It was a well-thought-out move. Politics after politics. There are a lot of things but I choose to stay silent because Pakistan’s cricket is getting worse and I don’t want that to happen. Things will be worse in the coming days.”
Basit also expressed his displeasure over Gary Kirsten not allotting enough time for Pakistan during his coaching tenure, adding :
“You people say that Gary Kirsten is very good. What good? He has spent all his good time. Now he will again try to join IPL or PSL. He is running his own academy in Cape Town. Why do you even appoint such people who can’t give time to Pakistan?”