Former Pakistani cricketers are not happy with the impending announcement of Mickey Arthur as the national cricket team’s director.
The former coach of the national side recently excused himself from taking the coaching role on a full-time basis but is set the named as “team director” due to his commitments with Derbyshire.
The title means that the 54-year-old will only be with the squad in a limited capacity and during the series of his choosing.
Najam Sethi, the head of PCB’s management committee, has been adamant about keeping Mickey Arthur in some capacity with the national squad, a decision which has not sat well with former cricketers.
Shahid Afridi, the former interim chief selector, recently expressed his disapprobation of the idea.
“There are better coaches available within Pakistan. The PCB must hire one of the home-grown coaches,” he had said during a conference.
Now he has found support in Aqib Javed who also expressed his reservations.
“Coaching is a full-time job. If you are a coach of a well-recognised team, you must devote full time to help the team get better results,” he said.
Pakistan hiring coaches on a temporary basis is not a new practice. Mattew Hayden helping the Green Shirts in Australia is a prime example.
Arthur has remained a popular figure in Pakistan ever since helping them win the 2017 ICC Champion’s Trophy and improving their profile in limited-overs cricket under his reign.
His dismissal from the post raised plenty of uproar in Pakistan but his insistence on working from a distance may not be welcomed by many.
2023 is an important year for Pakistan with Asia Cup and the 50-Over World Cup set to take place later this year.
