On Thursday, the former Australian fast bowler was answering a fan’s question about his coaching period with the Pakistan cricket team in the Tests when he revealed all that was going on inside the Pakistan Cricket Board and the lack of professionalism that the board had. This seems to be an embarrassment to the PCB and to the fans of cricket in Pakistan.
In fact, Gillespie was appointed the head coach for Pakistan’s red-ball cricket by the PCB in April 2024; however, he resigned after a very short time in December 2024. He was then succeeded as the Test coach by former Pakistan fast bowler Aaqib Javed.
“Left me completely humiliated…” – the ‘no-nonsense’ revelation of Jason Gillespie
Recently, Gillespie caught the attention of the media when he made a loud and clear statement outlining the lack of communication and professionalism in the Pakistan Cricket Board. He also narrated how one of the assistant coaches during his term was fired without any prior notice.
His answering a fan’s question on PSL was the beginning of it all. “Sir, have you followed the Pakistan Super League in the past and your comments on it please?” a fan on X asked Gillespie to which the latter responded, “It’s a great competition”.
Moreover, a fan’s question, “Then why you opted out from Pakistan coaching?” made the conversation even more interesting.
The question that led to Gillespie’s reply:
What the Pakistan Cricket Board least would have imagined was how a cricket fan’s question would lead to this answer from Gillespie.
“I was the coach of the Pakistan Test squad. The PCB dismissed our senior assistant coach without any form of communication with me about it – as Head Coach I deemed this whole thing perplexing and very unprofessional. There were other things going on that just made me feel more degraded,” was one part of Gillespie’s reply to the cricket fan.
The ex-Aussie fast bowler, in his response, blamed the PCB for putting him in a degrading situation where he had no power and then taking the matter to an extent that he resigned from the coaching post.
Pakistani coaches’ bad history
One of the coaches who had been in the Pakistan dressing room for a short time was Gillespie. His reign over the Pakistan Test team saw the home series against Bangladesh, where Pakistan won 2-1 after losing the first Test in Rajshahi.
Then he led the Pakistan team in a T20I series loss in Australia after guiding them through an ODI series victory over the hosts.
Moreover, the Test series in South Africa was one of his major tasks as he was the head coach of Pakistan for that tour. He was present at the Boxing Day Test in Centurion but left resigned halfway through with Aaqib Javed taking over the charge.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has had coaches and support staff issues also in the past besides Jason Gillespie. The board later on announced the name of former Indian coach Gary Kirsten as the white-ball coach in April 2024.
The two-year contract was signed between the board and Kirsten; however, he submit his resignation in October 2024 claiming he would leave immediately. Differing views on selection and power struggle in the board were among the reasons mentioned for his resignation.
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