ISLAMABAD: Batting legend Javed Miandad’s refusal to coach the national cricket team has forced the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to defer the appointment of batting coach till the conclusion of the West Indies tour. An official of the PCB has informed that the PCB has deferred the appointment of batting coach till the end of West Indies series as they are unable to find a suitable bating expert at the moment. Pakistan will play five-match ODI and two-match Test series in West Indies from April 23 to May 20.
“Actually nobody in the board was expecting that Miandad will refuse this offer and everybody was considering him as a batting consultant for the squad. However, his refusal stunned the management and they did not have sufficient time to look for a batting consultant before the West Indies tour,” he said. “Pakistan will spend one month in West Indies and it is improper to name a new batting coach at this moment. We believe that the board will be in better position to name someone for this slot towards the end of this tour,” the official said.
He added the board had already started looking for a batting consultant and the top management had some names under considerations. “We are unaware about the possible candidates but the top bosses surely have some names under discussion. Hopefully these names will be made public in next few days,” he added. The issue of appointment of a batting coach was raised by skipper Shahid Afridi and other members of team management after the Pakistan batsmen failed to perform in the World Cup that concluded earlier this month in India.
