PCB appoints Saqlain, Bradburn for HP unit
Image : Collected
|| Desk Report ||
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has brought veteran spinner Saqlain Mushtaq back in the PCB job after a long lull as they appointed him as Head of International Player Development as part of the prestigious High-Performance Centres restructuring today.
Saqlain, who has played international cricket from 1995-2004 will now work on identifying, developing and preparing players to make them world-class cricketers.
Former Bangladesh bowling coach Saqlain who is also a Level III coach also worked as a spin bowling coach with West Indies and England men’s cricket teams, also served as a consultant for PCB, Cricket Australia and New Zealand Cricket.
“It’s an honour and a privilege to represent Pakistan. In this background, I’m delighted to have been offered this exciting opportunity to work on skilful and exciting young cricketers and help them grow in their careers,” Saqlain said.
“I have previously worked with a diverse group of cricketers and helped them improve their cricket. I’m confident I’ll be able to translate all my knowledge and experience in the High-Performance Centre and help the PCB raise the bar and set new benchmarks, he was quoted as saying in the statement.
“Before agreeing to the role, I had a look at a number of things, including the cricketing environment and people I’ll be working with. I think the vision, aspirations and strategy of the PCB is heading in the right direction and, as such, it is the right time to join the high-performance team in Lahore and try to take Pakistan cricket back to its glory days,” he concluded.
The PCB also appointed former New Zealand cricketer Grant Bradburn as Head of High-Performance Coaching and former cricketer Asser Malik as High-Performance Operations Manager.
Former Kiwi player Bradburn played seven Tests and 11 ODIs for the Kiwis. He is currently the fielding coach of Pakistan national team from 2018 after a successful coaching stint with Scotland.
“I’m honoured that my association and relationship with Pakistan cricket continues. I consider it a privilege to work here in Pakistan among highly skilled players and coaches, while I’ve realised there is incredible talent and passion for the game in this country,” Bradburn was quoted as saying in the statement.
PCB CEO Wasim Khan said that Pakistan to reclaim the top spot in the world ranking is their ultimate goal. For these, the new appointments will help them to get closer to their goals.
“The High-Performance Centre is the heart of Pakistan cricket, which will ultimately set the direction of Pakistan cricket’s future. The unique skills and understanding that each of these individuals have of their specific areas will help create alignment to international standards and best practices,” Khan was quoted as saying in the statement.
“The PCB’s objective is to help the men’s national team reclaim their top rankings and we will leave no stone unturned in creating opportunities and providing tools to the players to achieve these targets,” he concluded.
