KARACHI: Pakistan’s red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie reached here on Sunday for his first assignment in the role and held a press conference, addressing the key issues of the Green Shirts.
The former Australian pacer was appointed the red-ball head coach in April and will take charge from the home Test series against Bangladesh, scheduled in August.
In his first press conference, he expressed his excitement to work with Pakistan’s senior team, while also confirming that he will be touring to Darwin with Pakistan Shaheens.
“I am excited to work with the Pakistan cricket team and will also travel to Australia with the Shaheens,” Gillespie stated.
The former Australian appreciated the Green Shirts’ talent, however, he pointed out that the major concern is the team’s inconsistency, which was also evident on their tour of Australia, where they lost 3-0.
“During the last tour to Australia, Pakistan lost the series 3-0 but they played well. There were moments in the series where they were also dominating the opponents,” he added.
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“The Pakistan cricket team is very talented but the lack of consistency in performances is the main problem, we will see how we can bring continuity and consistency in performances.”
He also emphasized the importance of fitness in modern cricket and stated that there would be no compromise on fitness. “In international cricket, you have to remain fit; there are no excuses for fitness,” he stated.
Along with fitness, Jason Gillespie also highlighted the concerns with Pakistan’s fielding performance while vowing to improve it
“There is a general opinion that Pakistan’s fielding is their weak point, so that would be my priority. For me, the goal is to see how we play against quality sides.”
The head coach also opened up about his conversation with Test captain Shan Masood and white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten.
“I have talked to Shan Masood [Pakistan’s red-ball capain] one to two times, I’m hoping we will play positive cricket,” Gillespie shared.
“If a player is good for the team, he will definitely be selected. I’m in contact with Gary Kirsten [Pakistan’s white-ball coach] for players’ workload management.”