Gary Kirsten named Pakistan White-Ball Head Coach, Jason Gillespie takes Red-Ball Head Coach role

Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie have been appointed as white-ball and red-ball head coaches respectively of the Pakistan National team by the PCB. 

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— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) April 28, 2024

The Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed this development earlier today with a post on their official X (formerly Twitter) handle.

Gary Kirsten will take care of Pakistan's ODI and T20I affairs while former Aussie pacer Jason Gillespie will look after the Test team. Interim head coach Azhar Mahmood will serve as the Pakistani assistant coach across all formats going forward. 

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When will Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie join the Pakistani team? 

Gary Kirsten is expected to take over the head coaching role from Azhar Mahmood after the conclusion of IPL 2024 where he is coaching the Gujarat Titans. As for Jason Gillespie, the Australian will have to wait for some time before getting into the mix of things as Pakistan are not slated to play any Test cricket before August. 

The main onus will be on 2011 Cricket World Cup winning head coach with team India - Gary Kirsten. He is expected to join the team by next month and if the Gujarat Titans doesn't end up qualifiying for IPL 2024 play-offs, Kirsten can join them sooner than expected. 

Under the head coaching of Gary Kirsten, Pakistan will be aiming to get their hands on the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 which has eluded them in the last two editions. During the 2021 T20 WC in UAE, Pakistan were knocked out by the Aussies in the semis while in the 2022 edition, Babar Azam's side the finale at MCG against England. 

This time around with a World Cup winning coach at the helm, the Pakistanis will aim for the stars and try to become the joint most successful in the tournament's history. Kirsten is most likely to join the team before May 22nd, right after Pakistan's 3-match T20I series in Ireland after which they will cross borders to play a 4-match T20I series in England. 

Pakistan will play the 1st T20I on May 22nd at Headingley before travelling to Edgbaston, Sophia Gardens (Cardiff) and London (Kia Oval) for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th match on 25th, 28th and 30th May. The Men in Green will then fly to USA for the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 wherein their opening match will be against hosts USA in Dallas. 

What is the tenure of Kirsten and Gillespie as white and red-ball coaches?

The Pakistan Cricket Board have agreed deals with Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie on a 2-year contract. The respective deals will run until 2026, by the time the next T20 World Cup in Asia takes place. The appointments of Kirsten and Gillespie acts as a sigh of relief for the PCB, who extensively searched for a head coach for over 2-3 months. 

Shane Watson and Darren Sammy were also in their radar but Kirsten and Gillespie are now the ones to take in charge of the 2009 T20 World Cup winners.