Jason Gillespie resigned as Pakistan's Test coach over selection dispute

Karachi: Jason Gillespie decided to step down from his role as Pakistan's red-ball coach after not being consulted on the selection of the national squad for the upcoming two-Test series in South Africa.

A well-informed source, familiar with the developments, revealed that some officials in the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had created a difficult environment for Gillespie, who just a month ago had even been offered the job of head coach of the white-ball squad

"Circumstances were created to make the former Australian player feel alienated in major decisions about the team," the source said.

"First despite his request the board didn't renew the contract of high performance coach Tim Nielsen and then the Test squad for the SA series was announced without consulting him," he added.

The source said that while Gillespie was aware that the board had stripped him of say in the selection matters, he expected as head coach, he would be consulted by the selectors in the selection of any series.

"Gillespie was also not happy that while refusing to renew contract of Nielsen whom he had recommended the board preferred to bring in Shahid Aslam from the national cricket academy as a coach into the support staff on recommendation of interim white ball head coach and senior selector Aaqib Javed,” the source added.

He said that in recent weeks, Gillespie's calls were not being regularly answered by some officials, which irked him. This was particularly frustrating as he had agreed to serve as interim coach for the white-ball series in Australia, where Pakistan won the ODI series for the first time since 2002.

The source confided that foreign coaches who tried to assert their authority were never popular with some PCB officials. In the past, others, including Gillespie and Gary Kirsten, who resigned as white-ball head coach before the Australia series over authority issues, had faced similar fates. sues.

"The sad part is that some senior players also have a role to play in deciding with which coach (es) they are comfortable with and have the backing of some officials."

Kirsten and Gillespie were appointed in March-April this year on two-year contracts, and the PCB Chairman had hailed their arrival as a significant step forward for Pakistan cricket.

The officials who created the circumstances leading to Gillespie's resignation are now fueling rumors that the Australian was demanding a pay raise and unwilling to spend the required time in Pakistan as stipulated in his contract, the source said.