‘Couldn’t drive 20 minutes’: former Pakistan coach slams PCB chief

Former Pakistan red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie has voiced his disappointment over Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi’s absence from a crucial team-building session, known as the “Connection Camp.”

Speaking on The Howie Games podcast, Gillespie recounted the efforts made by himself and white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten to attend the camp—initiated by Kirsten—only to find a noticeable lack of engagement from the top PCB official.

“Gary came up with this great idea of a connection camp. Everyone in Pakistan cricket basically shared their experiences in that meeting. I flew in from Australia, Gary flew in from South Africa, the Chairman Mohsin Naqvi dialed in Zoom,” said Gillespie.

“He is based in Lahore, but he did not come, while Gary came in from Africa. We both felt that the Chairman could not even drive 20 minutes to come here — that was a bit unusual.” he added.

The Pakistan Cricket Board held the camp on September 23, 2024, with the aim of improving communication, collaboration, and performance among the national team. 

The session featured eight senior players, including Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Rizwan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Shadab Khan, and Shan Masood.

PCB Chief Operating Officer Salman Naseer had described the camp as a timely initiative ahead of a packed cricketing calendar, with its primary objective being the development of a unified vision and mission for the national team.

It is pertinent to mention that the former Australian pacer resigned as the national team’s Test coach just days before the South Africa Test series last year.

He cited the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) sacking high-performance coach Tim Nielsen as a key factor in his departure.

"I was completely and utterly blindsided by a decision to not have a high-performance coach," Gillespie said.

"I just thought after a number of other things that had gone on in the previous few months, that was probably the moment where I thought, 'Well, I'm not really sure if they actually really want me to do this job or not.'"

Gillespie, who represented Australia in 71 Tests and 97 ODIs, also shared his frustration over his limited role and communication gaps during his tenure.

"I felt I was basically hitting catches and that was about it on the morning of a game," he added.

"You want to be able to have clear communication with all stakeholders, with selectors, for instance, knowing what the team is as head coach well before the game, or before at least the day before the game."

In a related development, Gary Kirsten resigned as Pakistan’s white-ball head coach in October 2024—just six months after his appointment—citing disagreements over selection authority. 

Both Kirsten and Gillespie were stripped of their selection powers by the PCB, which reportedly played a key role in Kirsten’s resignation.

Following Kirsten’s departure, Gillespie was named interim white-ball head coach for Pakistan’s tour of Australia.