Kirsten to conduct audit of BD team

DHAKA: Gary Kirsten will complete an internal audit of the Bangladesh team before giving his recommendations for the appointment of a full-time head coach.

The position has been vacant since the resignation of Chandika Hathurusingha in November 2017.Nizamuddin Chowdhury, BCB’s chief executive, has said Kirsten’s role is limited to these two duties since he has declined the BCB’s offer to stay in a long-term role until the 2019 World Cup.

Kirsten, who arrived here on Sunday evening, met Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mashrafe Mortaza on Monday morning in three separate meetings. He is also slated to meet BCB chief Nazmul Hassan.

While it might seem like too little time for such an assessment, Kirsten’s appointment as an independent auditor of the senior team is a first in Bangladesh cricket. It is certainly a more professional approach than ever before.

Given how difficult it has been for the BCB to find a head coach who they believe can take the team further, it is believed to be a positive approach to take a little more time during which they conduct an objective analysis of what is required.

“Gary Kirsten is doing an internal audit of the Bangladesh team,” Chowdhury said. “He will give an assessment to the cricket board about how the team can improve looking ahead to ICC competitions like the World Cup and World T20. At the same time, he is also working with us on coach recruitment.”