Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Jonathan Trott will continue as Afghanistan’s head coach for another year after the country’s cricket board extended his contract through 2025.

The announcement comes a few months ahead of next year’s Champions Trophy, where Afghanistan will make their maiden appearance.

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The 43-year-old former England batter has been Afghanistan’s head coach since July 2022, and under his guidance, the team has made impressive strides in international cricket.

“The Afghanistan Cricket Board wishes Trott the best of luck for his next year’s stint with Afghan Atalan as he strives to elevate Afghanistan cricket further on the global stage,” the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said in a statement.

Under Trott, the team has achieved significant milestones, including reaching their first-ever T20 World Cup semi-final this year with stunning victories over Australia and New Zealand.

Afghanistan also enjoyed a memorable ODI World Cup last year in India, where they stunned England, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, finishing among the top eight teams to secure their maiden appearance in the Champions Trophy.

Additionally, Afghanistan recently triumphed in a bilateral ODI series against South Africa and Bangladesh in Sharjah, winning both by 2-1 margins.

Since Trott’s appointment, Afghanistan have played 34 ODIs, winning 14, and in 44 T20Is they have 20 victories.

The team is currently touring Zimbabwe for an all-format series, which includes three T20Is, three ODIs, and two Tests.

However, Trott will accompany the squad only for the ODI matches, as he will remain unavailable for the T20Is and Tests due to personal commitments, the ACB added.

In Trott’s absence, Hamid Hassan will step up as head coach, while Nawroz Mangal, who recently guided Afghanistan to victory in the Emerging Asia Cup, will serve as the assistant head coach for the series, it added.

Afghanistan players and staff members celebrate their win against Pakistan in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 match in Chennai on October 23, 2023.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

After a few close encounters between the two sides in recent times, Afghanistan finally got one over Pakistan for the first time in one-day internationals, and the team’s coach, Jonathan Trott, was all praise for the way his side dominated the game on October 23.

“Well, yeah, it doesn’t take a lot to see the passion and the rivalry between them. You know, (in) Asia Cup, we had a very disappointing loss last year. And then we had a series against them a couple of months ago, a three-match ODI series, in which a few times we were in the game, and I am just glad today we were in the game again and managed to get across the line,” said Trott on the significance of Afghanistan’s historic victory over Pakistan.

The former English batter also felt the win would give the team’s batters a sense of self-confidence that they could do this consistently and inspire the next set of cricketers back home.

“Very happy for a few of the batsmen who have, hopefully, will now have that self-belief that we can go on and trust their games and be very confident for the games coming forward. I think for the country, it just shows the amount of talent, and as it was when we were fortunate enough to beat England, it inspires another generation of players to pick up a cricket bat or ball and work on their fielding and fitness,” he added.

Crediting the performance of the openers in setting up the victory, Trott said, “The turning point for me was the start that Ibrahim and Gurbaz gave us – I think it is always good when you’re chasing a total like that. You need a good start, and there is less pressure on the players coming in. So those two batsmen, I think (were) outstanding. I’m very happy for Ibrahim getting into the tournament now and showing everybody on the world stage what a good player he is.”

The Afghan coach also praised Rahmat Shah’s unbeaten knock of 77 and how he anchored the chase. “I thought the players in the middle, their emotions were outstanding. I think to have a historic win like this as well for the players, you could easily get ahead of yourself or get a bit nervous or panicky. I thought the way that Rahmat Shah played, there are still a few things, a few singles he could have maybe taken to take the pressure off himself, but the shot that he played there to hit a straight six sort of broke the back of the game and the way that the captain played as well, you know, took the pressure off the changing room,” the 42-year-old explained.

Meanwhile, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam felt his team’s bowlers and fielders did not put their best foot forward, resulting in the former champions’ third-straight defeat of the tournament.

“This loss was very hard as a team. I think we were not up to the mark in bowling and fielding. In the middle overs, the spinners didn’t bowl as they should have and didn’t put pressure on them,” said Azam.

“In fielding, you must put in extra effort and be fit. You should focus on the ball, not on other thoughts, and when the ball comes, you have to be proactive as a fielder, so I think we are lagging a little bit as a fielding unit,” added the Pakistani skipper.