ISLAMABAD: Abdul Rehman, who is Pakistan’s head coach for the upcoming three-match T20 series against Afghanistan, Tuesday said that his side was settled and has all the capacity to beat Afghanistan.
Abdul Rehman proved himself country’s most successful domestic cricket coach and he was elevated to the job of head coach for the series that starts from March 24 in Sharjah.
All the rumours and speculations regarding elevation of Mohammad Yousaf to the job of head coach came to an end as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has decided to appoint Abdul Rehman to the coveted position for the short series.
In an exclusive chat with ‘The News’ following his appointment Tuesday, Abdul Rehman hoped that Pakistan would go on to perform well in the upcoming series.
“I am fully confident that the team will go on to perform well in the series. The team has got all the potential and required talent to perform well. So I as a head coach of the national team, am quite confident that these boys will go to make us proud,” Abdul Rehman, who will be on his first assignment as head coach of the national team, said.
Abdul Rehman has been one of the success stories in the domestic coaching circuit and is considered the most dedicated and professional coach around.
He was the head coach of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa when they won National T20 and Pakistan Cup and shared Quaid-e-Azam Trophy with Central Punjab. He also won two National T20s as head coach of Peshawar Panthers and was Peshawar Zalmi’s assistant coach when they won the Pakistan Super League in 2017.
“We have youngsters for all types of cricket. These youngsters are the ones who have been performing outstandingly in domestic cricket and even have expressed themselves in a big way in the ongoing PSL. So, I am sure that these would be at their best during the series against Afghanistan,” he said.
Abdul Rehman added the youngsters are full of potential.
“Every player selected in the team is a specialist in his respective department. So we are carrying a team full of performers and potential match-winners. I am confident that the team would go on to beat Afghanistan in the three-match One-Day series,” the new head coach told ‘The News’.
Abdul Rehman is a seasoned coach, who has been carrying out duties at the domestic level for decades. He has also been an assistant coach under Andy Flower at Multan Sultans for the last four years. He was Pakistan Under-19 coach during Bangladesh’s tour of Multan in November last year.
Besides, Abdul Rehman’s appointment, Umar Gul has also been named as the bowling coach of the Pakistan side for the three-match T20I series.
Umar Gul, one of the most celebrated T20 bowlers in Pakistan, was Afghanistan’s bowling coach in the recent ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup 2022. He took 85 wickets at 16.97 in 60 T20Is from 2007-16.
Mohammad Yousuf and Abdul Majeed will continue their roles as batting and fielding coaches, respectively.
Player support personnel
Mansoor Rana (team manager), Abdul Rehman (head coach), Umar Gul (bowling coach), Mohammad Yousuf (batting coach), Abdul Majeed (fielding coach), Cliffe Deacon (physiotherapist), Drikus Saaimon (strength and conditioning coach), Talha Ijaz (analyst), Ahsan Iftikhar Nagi (media and digital manager), and Lt Col (r) Usman Anwari (security manager).
Abdul Mohi Shah Abdul Mohi Shah is a senior reporter for The News