Former Australian pacer Jason Gillespie resigned as the red-ball head coach of the national men’s team after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) refused to accept his demands, including a salary increase, sources claimed on Friday.
Gillespie, according to a press release issued by the PCB on Thursday, resigned from his post due to personal reasons.
However, sources claimed that the former cricketer made the decision due to his frustrations with the PCB, prompted by the cricket board’s decision to exclude him from the selection committee.
Sources further shared that Gillespie had expressed his desire to take up the role of head coach for both red-ball and white-ball formats but the PCB declined his request.
Gillespie also demanded a salary increase, which was denied by PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, sources added.
Adding more to the complexity, the PCB had demanded Gillespie to spend more time in Pakistan but the latter was unwilling to accept the condition.
These concerns mirrored those raised by former white-ball coach Gary Kirsten, who also declined to remain in the country besides during the team’s active assignments.
Furthermore, both Gillespie and Kirsten had demanded the PCB to include their preferred support staff, which the board reportedly did not comply.
Jason Gillespie had previously threatened the PCB to resign if his demands were not met before he eventually stepped down from the role just days ahead of the commencement of the national men’s team’s two-match away Test series against South Africa.
Following his resignation, the PCB has announced Aqib Javed as the interim head coach for the red-ball team as well.
Sohail Imran Sohail Imran is a senior reporter for Geo News.
