File photo of Gary Kirsten.© AFP
World Cup-winner Gary Kirsten was appointed as the white-ball head of the Pakistan men’s cricket team on Sunday. The ex-South African player is set to stay in the role for the next two years, during which Pakistan will be playing two T20 World Cups in 2024 and 2026 and one Champions Trophy when it comes to major ICC tournaments. Soon after taking the role role, Kirsten put forward his views regarding the future planning for the team and according to out-of-favour Pakistan player Ahmed Shehzad what the new coach said were “weak statements”.
“If you can win one of those three ICC Events, that will be an amazing achievement on its own, whether it’s the upcoming event or it’s two years from now,” Kirsten said on the PCB Podcast.
“My job is to make sure that the team operates at its best, it’s as simple as that. And if the team is operating at its best, we will always have a good chance of winning a trophy.”
Shehzad criticised Kirsten’s intent after reacting to his statement.
“Gary Kirsten is a renowned coach but he will be fed information by those who will select the team. He does not have a base in Lahore nor has he grown up in Pakistan to understand the nature of different players,” Shehzad told Geo News.
“At the end of the day, those involved with PCB are the ones who will be guiding him and doing all of this 2 years will have passed by. Already he has made a statement that I did not like. Kirsten said if we do not win the upcoming T20 World Cup then we might do well in the next two.
“So already he is keeping himself in a safe position. He must show confidence and these are weak statements. This is not how a winner talks.”
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