Pakistan selectors Mohammad Yusuf, Abdul Razzaq will coach team in T20s against NZ

Lahore: The Pakistan Cricket Board has decided to appoint Muhammad Yousuf and Abdul Razzaq as interim head coach and assistant coach, respectively, for the home T20 series against New Zealand later this month.

The decision comes as negotiations with foreign coaches Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillispie continue for a long-term role.

A reliable source in the board said that while matters with Gillispie were nearly complete as he had agreed to take over as head coach of the red-ball format, discussions with Kirsten were not yet finalised as he is busy in the Indian Premier League.

“Gillispie had agreed with certain conditions pertaining to his fees and presence for a number of days in Pakistan,” the source said.

He said the former Australian fast bowler would be available after the T20 World Cup when Pakistan resume their World Test Championship campaign against Bangladesh, England and SA.

Kirsten will be the new white ball format coach if it all goes as per plan.

The source said since the 5 T20 games against New Zealand would begin from April 18, the board had decided to give Yousuf and Razzaq the responsibility of coaching the team.

The future of bowling coaches, Umar Gul and Saeed Ajmal, is yet to be decided but they are most likely to be part of the support team.

Yousuf and Razzaq are also both part of the new selection committee of the board.

The PCB has now also advertised for the post of assistant coach.

The plan is to integrate the assistant coach with Kirsten and Gillispie and he will be the bridge between the support teams of both formats.

The PCB has also conducted interviews for the post of the Pakistan team manager for the firs time.