PCB to sack Head Coach and Support Staff after flop show in Champions Trophy 2025

Aaqib Javed, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) appointed interim head coach and his support staff are likely to be removed from their positions after the team’s disaster show at the 2025 Champions Trophy. This comes after Pakistan lost in a row to New Zealand and India and got eliminated from the tournament.

After Gary Kirsten resigned in late 2024, Aaqib Javed found himself with a freshly minted interim head coach breathing down his neck over the team’s poor performance. Even Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, and Mohammad Rizwan could not lift the team’s performance.

PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi is expected to comment on the future of the selection committee and the possibility of appointing separate head coaches for red-ball and white-ball teams. The PCB has been lambasted time and again by pundits and former cricketers for not sticking with one coach and formulating a long-term strategy.

Champions Trophy Debacle: PCB Sacks Coaching Staff Amid Fan Fury

The manager Aaqib Javed and his coaching team are dismissed after Pakistan embarrassingly loses all its matches in the 2025 Champions Trophy, especially the ones against India and New Zealand. Playing on home turf, Pakistan went down to India by six wickets and to New Zealand by 60 runs. Critics have pilloried the team for not playing well under pressure, for making bad strategic decisions, and for executing poorly. The PCB is changing the coaches to remedy precisely such failures.

“Pakistan cricket is stuck in a cycle of poor decision-making. The coaching setup needs to be revamped entirely. We can’t continue to experiment with temporary solutions,” said former cricketer Shoaib Akhtar

The PCB has decided to replace the coaching staff following escalating criticism from fans and ex-cricketers. The problem of holding on to foreign coaches has led the board to consider former players as a replacement for the coaching positions. The team’s rebuild and readiness are going to be put to the test on the upcoming tour to New Zealand, from March 16 to April 5.

It is rumored that the PCB is considering replacing Aaqib Javed with several former cricket players. Possible candidates include Misbah-ul-Haq, Mohammad Hafeez, and Shoaib Malik. Ex-Pakistani coach Misbah-ul-Haq is cool and composed. Another serious candidate is Mohammad Hafeez, a talented all-rounder and a smart cricketer. There’s Shoaib Malik too, a seasoned international cricketer and a man with leadership skills. Such ex-players could stabilize the team, and provide it with new insights.

The PCB’s decision to dismiss Aaqib Javed and his coaching team highlights the frantic necessity to solve the team’s problems and regain the confidence of supporters and investors. With an eye to the next competition, Pakistan will now need to find the right captain.