The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has provided the former Australian head coach a new role in their team for the longest format of the game. Under the captaincy of Shan Masood and the guidance of head coach Jason Gillespie, they are going to host Bangladesh and England in this upcoming Test summer.
Pakistan is set to host the Najmul Hossain Shanto-led side for the two-match series in the red-ball format, with the first one being scheduled to start on August 21 at the Pindi Stadium in Rawalpindi and the second one to begin from August 30 at the National Stadium in Karachi. Both of these games are going to be part of the World Test Championship (WTC).
Their biggest challenge in the format will be when they face the Ben Stokes-led side in late Autumn. During the 2022 season, the Bazball trend blew the home side by a 3-0 margin, showing how poor Pakistan has been at home.
Tim Nielsen to join Pakistan in this new position
Since their below-average performance in the recent T20 World Cup 2024 in the United States of America, where they failed to reach the ‘super 8’ stage of the tournament, the Green Brigade has been under the scanner, and of late, decisions on the players have put them under the scanner.
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They will be eager to tick all the boxes in their preparations for the red-ball format before the upcoming series. As a result, they have hired the former Australian head coach Tim Nielsen as the high-performance coach of Tests.
The new addition to the coaching department of the Pakistan National side has been a massive boost for the team. Tim will be working with head coach Gillespie, both of whom have worked in the past for the South Australia side, and will look to bring the same impact for Babar Azam and co.
Nielsen was in the head coach role of the Australian team from February 2007 to September 2011, replacing John Buchanan in this role. Under his tenure, the Aussies earned the Champions Trophy 2010, besides registering many memorable games across formats.
The 56-year-old has played 101 first-class games for South Australia, managing 3805 runs at an average of 26.06, celebrating 15 half-centuries and five centuries, having a best score of 115. The wicket-keeper batter also featured in 51 games in the List-A format, notching up 639 runs at an average of 18.25, with one fifty.
The veteran, despite not playing for the national side, has done a good job in coaching. He has joined Jason Gillespie’s men and is working on the training camp of Pakistan Shaheen’s team ahead of the start of the Test summer.
Pakistan hasn’t done well in the last two cycles of the World Test Championship (WTC), and finds themselves in the fifth position in the current 2023-25 season, with two wins in five games.
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The national side recently announced their 17-member squad for the Bangladesh series, whose future is yet to be decided due to the recent disturbing situation of the touring country. The left-handed opening batter, Imam Ul Haq, all-rounder Faheem Ashraf, Sajid Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, and others haven’t been retained in the squad.
Pakistan’s Test squad vs Bangladesh
Shan Masood (c), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal (subject to Fitness), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Shaheen Afridi.