Mickey Arthur has been left ‘hurt and disappointed’ after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) opted against renewing his contract as head coach of the Pakistan men’s team.
The Australian had earlier sought a two-year extension to his Pakistan stint with his current contract with the PCB set to expire on August 15 but the board decided to go another way in an announcement made on Wednesday.
The PCB have opted against renewing the contract of Arthur or that of his support staff comprising of bowling coach Azhar Mahmood, batting coach Grant Flower and trainer Grant Luden
“I am extremely disappointed and hurt,” the South African told AFP following the PCB’s announcement.
“I did my wholehearted effort to lift Pakistan cricket,” he added.
Arthur took over the Pakistan hot seat in the summer of 2016 and oversaw the team’s historic triumph at the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy in England. Under Arthur’s tenure, Pakistan have established themselves as the top-ranked T20I outfit in the world but the side has struggled to generate the same success in the Test and ODI formats.
Arthur’s final assignment with Pakistan saw the Men in Green narrowly miss out on semi-final qualification in the 2019 ICC World Cup in England. They ultimately finished fifth in the 10-team tournament and lost out to New Zealand on net run-rate.
The former Australia head coach is reportedly one of the shortlisted candidates being considered to replace Trevor Bayliss in the England coaching job. Bayliss, who led England to their maiden World Cup title recently, is set to return to the Indian Premier League (IPL) after his current contract with England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) expires with the completion of the Ashes series.
With Arthur and his support staff now let go, the PCB is set to advertise for the vacant in the near future. The new coaching staff will be appointed after a four-member cricket committee which includes Wasim Akram and Misbah-ul-Haq has assessed the team’s performance in the 2019 World Cup.
