Misbah-ul-Haq decides to quit his role as Pakistan's chief selector

Since taking over as Pakistan’s head coach and national chief selector alongside coaching Islamabad United in the Pakistan Super League, Misbah’s performances in all three departments have been terrible. That put him in a difficult situation as compared to when he was the head of the Cricket Improvement Committee and the call for his ouster was louder than ever.

After losing the Test series 1-0, Pakistan managed to level the T20 series 1-1 but none of the players really stood up as expected due to the Covid hiatus. But it was increasingly clear that Misbah was finding it daunting to deliver for which PCB Chairman Ehsan Mani had revealed that there would be an extensive review of his performance.

"I have thoroughly enjoyed the dual roles but after reviewing the past 12 months and looking ahead at the workload in the next 24 months of my tenure, it is appropriate that I invest and dedicate all my time, energy and attention to one role from now on. Coaching is my passion and my ultimate objective remains to contribute to the development of players and help the side achieve bigger successes," Misbah said, after resigning from the role.

"When I was appointed last year, I was offered the coaching role first and then given the option to also head the selection committee, which I had graciously accepted. I am grateful to the Pakistan Cricket Board for their understanding and for supporting my thought process," he added.

"I had been thinking about the demands and rigours of the dual roles for some time. The meetings with the National High Performance staff and the Cricket Association coaches in the past two weeks have provided me better clarity and helped me in my decision-making as I believe we now have a strong system in place.

"With the new Cricket Association system in full flow, the chief selector has to be able to watch as much domestic cricket as possible. With a big 24 months now coming up, we have mutually agreed that there is a need for me now to be fully focused on one role. I look forward to a strong working relationship with the new chair of the selection committee and hope together we will achieve our collective objectives," Misbah said.