Ramiz Raja on Gary Kirsten’s departure – ‘It won’t be easy for Pakistan to recruit international talent’

Pakistan cricket was plunged into the usual turmoil when Kirsten resigned on Monday as the coach of Pakistan’s ODI and T20I teams. He was six months into a two-year contract and left on the eve of Pakistan’s white-ball tour of Australia.

Kirsten, who led India to victory in the 2011 World Cup, leaves her role having never coached Pakistan in a single ODI.

Even by the PCB’s standards, the public struggles have been serious and threaten to deter would-be international coaches. Prominent players Shane Watson and Darren Sammy were heard earlier this year before they turned down offers to coach the national team.

“If you’re looking for international coaches, with the kind of backlash you’re likely to get with Gary Kirsten’s resignation…it’s not going to be an easy, straightforward task for Pakistan to hire international talent,” Ramiz told reporters during a press conference. before the Australian tour.

“What you have to do is to make sure that when you involve someone, you have to make them clear about the role.

“I don’t know if that was explained to Gary Kirsten or how he wanted to put Pakistan in this one-day stage, what he wanted to achieve. I don’t know that.

“It’s not good news [Kirsten’s departure] because Pakistan needed an experienced hand. If you’re away, it doesn’t look good right before the tour.”

There has been a rift between Kirsten and Jason Gillespie, Pakistan’s newly-minted Test coach, and the PCB since the board decided to strip them of their powers of selection after Pakistan’s first Test defeat against England.

ESPNcricinfo understands that Gillespie, who will fill Kirsten’s shoes on the Australian tour, has also been left out of favor by the recent changes. A new selection panel – the third in three months – was formed and, in a rare development, it included referee Aleem Dar.

“I don’t know if the referee is a selector, so the jury is still out,” said Ramiz. “I still believe that there is a strong role for the cricket leader. You cannot run cricket sitting on the sidelines. The leader must be accountable and the only way to make him accountable is to give him some power.”

Pakistan will arrive in Australia not only with a new white-ball coach in Gillespie, but also Mohammad Rizwan who has taken over the captaincy following Babar Azam’s recent resignation.

It looks like a tough start for Rizwan, who will lead a side relatively inexperienced in three ODIs and T20Is against Australia.

“He got the opportunity and all he has to do is to stamp his authority and maybe find the players he wants,” said Ramiz about Rizwan. “Right now, there’s a bit of a hodgepodge when the selection committee picks the playing XI. I’m not sure it happens anywhere else in the world.

“I hope that Rizwan will find his XI that he feels comfortable with.”

After being heavily criticized for antagonizing Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood during a television interview following the England series, Ramiz called for “peace and quiet” within Pakistan cricket.

“I think it’s important that all the participants understand the undisputed importance of starting in what appears to be a very heavy weight calendar,” he said.

“I hope things are going well. I think Pakistan were in a very bad shape against England, and thankfully the series was won. I hope they will carry this momentum forward even though it’s a different format.

“But it is [Pakistan cricket] It’s a difficult place, a difficult place to govern because things happen so fast.”