Former Australian fast bowler Jason Gillespie has disclosed that he felt unwanted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) during his tenure as Pakistan’s head coach. Gillespie, who led the team to a 2-1 Test series victory over England in October, resigned last week ahead of the Test series against South Africa.
In an interview with ABC Sport during the lunch break of Australia’s third Test against India, Gillespie opened up about the challenges he faced during his time with the PCB. He cited a lack of clear communication and the dismissal of high-performance coach Tim Neilsen as key reasons for his departure.
“There were certainly challenges,” Gillespie admitted. “I knew Pakistan had gone through a lot of coaches in a short time, but the final straw was the decision to let go of Tim Neilsen without informing me. As head coach, you expect clear communication, and I was completely blindsided.”
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Gillespie expressed frustration over the lack of consultation, especially since Neilsen’s performance had been well-received by players and management. Despite building a strong relationship with Test captain Shan Masood and seeing positive progress, Gillespie felt undermined by other decisions, including not being included in discussions about team selections.
“I wasn’t even part of the conversation when a new selection panel was announced after our first Test loss to England,” Gillespie said. “It’s difficult to coach effectively when you don’t know your team until the day before a match.”
Gillespie also pointed out that his role was increasingly sidelined, saying, “I felt like I was just hitting catches on game mornings rather than contributing as a coach should.”
His resignation follows the earlier departure of Gary Kirsten as Pakistan’s white-ball coach. Gillespie had stepped in to guide the team to an ODI series win against Australia but had limited success in the T20 format.
The PCB has since appointed Aqib Javed as the interim Test coach.
