Wasim Jaffer, who was in talks with the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) to become the state’s head coach for the upcoming domestic season, has all but confirmed his place. The PCA has unanimously decided to rope in the domestic great instead of former Australian fast bowler Shaun Tait, who was also in the race to helm the role.
“Our main aim is to win the Ranji Trophy and also Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, so we unanimously decided to appoint him as the head coach. With his experience and expertise, we are confident that Jaffer will motivate the team to achieve success. He is one of the best longer format players in the country, and we did not want to miss out on the opportunity of having him on board,” PCA President Amarjeet Singh Mehta told Sportstar.
Wasim Jaffer yet to confirm
Although Punjab have made a decision, Jaffer has yet to give the green light. PCA CEO Deepak Sharma conveyed the organization’s decision to the former Indian cricketer in an email. It laid down the rule of appointment as follows: “from August 2, 2024 to March 31, 2025 or till the completion of the BCCI tournaments, whichever is earlier.”
If agreed, Jaffer would replace former Mumbai teammate Aavishkar Salvi as Punjab’s head coach. Salvi joined the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru earlier in the year and is also working as the India women’s cricket team’s bowling coach. As reigning champions of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Punjab will hope that the move to bring Jaffer will see them successfully defend their title. Ranji Trophy would be in main focus as well, with Punjab failing to make it knockouts last season.
“We have done reasonably well in white-ball cricket lately, but we want to be consistent in red-ball cricket, and that’s why we thought of looking at Jaffer,” Amarjeet Singh Mehta added.
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