Darren Sammy says a big NO to Pakistan Cricket Board after coaching Babar Azam

Former West Indies captain Darren Sammy, who was head coaching PSL outfit Peshawar Zalmi in season 9, has said a clear no to the Pakistan Cricket Board when offered the chance to take over as national team head coach. Sammy becomes the 2nd former cricketer after Australia’s Shane Watson to decline the offer of coaching the senior team following weeks of rigorous discussions.

Just like Darren Sammy, Shane Watson too was coaching a PSL 9 team – the Quetta Gladiators who bowed out of the competition from an Eliminator 1 match against Islamabad United. Peshawar Zalmi on the other hand tasted back-to-back defeats, first in the final qualifier match against Multan Sultans and then against Islamabad in Eliminator 2.

Darren Sammy declines Pakistan coaching role due to commitments with West Indies team

Darren Sammy, who led the West Indies towards the 2012 and 2016 ICC T20 World Cup titles, was denied from taking over as Pakistan’s head coach due to his commitments with the former team’s white ball setup. Sammy joined as West Indies’ ODI and T20I team head coach in May 2023 and has overseen every proceedings of the team since then.

It was under his head coaching that West Indies failed to qualify for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 in India which was the first time in the tournament’s history. The 2-time champions, who claimed the title in 1975 and 1979, first failed to receive direct qualification for the World Cup due to their ranking and then lost all of their 3 matches in the CWC qualifiers.

West Indies had lost to Zimbabwe, Netherlands, and then against minnows Scotland. It was the lowest of lows for the great cricketing side which has had some legendary names like Clive Lloyd, Sir Viv Richards, Curtley Ambrose, Chris Gayle, and Darren Sammy himself among others.

The Windies now have the chance to shine on their home soil when they co-host the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 along with the USA, starting from June 1. They have won the title twice already and a 3rd will make them the most successful side in the tournament as they are currently joint-most successful with reigning champions England.

With a very important assignment coming up as the host nation, Darren Sammy rejected PCB’s ask for him to become their head coach. The apex board had almost agreed with Shane Watson before they offered Sammy but the former eventually declined due to his commentary duties in IPL 2024 and head coaching role with San Francisco Unicorns in MLC season 2.

Sources make a shocking revelation about Shane Watson’s U-turn after reaching an agreement with PCB

The source which reported that Darren Sammy doesn’t want to head coach the Pakistan national team, also made a shocking revelation about why Shane Watson declined. The reports about Watson becoming the highest-ever paid coach in Pakistan’s cricketing history were leaked and it was something the 2007 and 2015 50-over World Cup winner didn’t appreciate.

“However, after the PCB more or less agreed to Watson’s financial demands, the Australian cricketer was displeased with the leakage of details regarding the proposed package in the Pakistani media and social media.” – the source claimed. 

Meanwhile, PCB will resume their lookout for a coach and if they don’t find any, chief Mohsin Naqvi will have to settle down with an interim coach for their National camp which runs from March 25 to April 8.