PCB PANEL’S DECISION TODAY: Misbah set to take over as head coach

ISLAMABAD: Misbahul Haq is all set to take over as the new national team head coach as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is set to announce the successful candidates for the key posts today (Wednesday).

‘The News’ has learnt that the PCB has stopped looking for options and as expected has settled for the former captain’s name for the head coach post.

Some leading former Test cricketers including Dean Jones, Mohsin Khan and Courtney Walsh have also gone through the process but the PCB panel looks like settling down in Misbah’s favour.

The panel constituted to interview contenders for the job of head coach and bowling coach included former Pakistan skipper and manager Intikhab Alam, commentator Bazid Khan, Governing Board member Asad Ali Khan, PCB Chief Executive Wasim Khan and PCB director of international cricket Zakir Khan.

It has been learnt that the panel has forwarded its recommendations to the PCB for the announcement. Misbah is favourite to take the head coach job while Waqar Younis, who earlier had worked as head coach, is favourite to take over the bowling coach job.

One of the former Test cricketers expressed his surprise over Waqar’s decision to even submitting application for the bowling coach.

“He has served as head coach of the Pakistan team earlier on. By applying for the bowling coach job, Waqar actually had admitted that he was never a capable head coach and the most he can contribute is with the fast bowlers.

“It is surprising that he has wasted Pakistan team’s crucial years as head coach. Had Waqar been a full-fledged capable coach, he would not have gone for Misbah’s assistant coach. All coaches will have to work under head coach Misbah who is likely to take over that position.”

The former Test cricketer said that preference should have been given to professional bowling coach and not the one who for the sake of job can go to any extent.

“Lowering the cadre is just no big issue for such type of job seekers who prefer working under any head coach despite the fact that they already served as head coach previously. Either that particular candidate was not capable of taking the job as head coach or his expected decision to work as assistant to a new comer holds no sense.”

However, the PCB version is that both have good relations and would become a force in coaching. “Both Misbah and Waqar have good binding and are expected to help Pakistan cricket a lot.”