"I'm getting splinters in my a** for sitting on the fence here" - Gillespie on his role as 'match-day strategist' after being removed as selector
Pakistan red-ball coach Jason Gillespie opened up on his revamped role, which involves only tactics for matches with no say on the squad selection. Both the coach and skipper Shan Masood were removed from the newfound selection committee, announced after the loss to England in the first Test in Multan.
Earlier Gillespie and Masood had a significant say in the selection committee that had no chief or a chairman. All seven members of the unit had an equal vote in the proceedings. However, shortly after Mohammad Yousuf resigned from his role on the committee, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) decided to shake things up entirely.
Apart from excluding both captain and coach from the group, the governing body made the unorthodox decision to appoint former umpire Aleem Dar on board, while former players like Aaqib Javed and Azhar Ali were also roped in.
The newly formed selection committee took a series of radical decisions right away, excluding star names like Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, and Naseem Shah for the remainder of the England Tests.
"The PCB came out and made some changes after that Test match. It was decided that a new selection panel would come in and they would be making decisions. I was not involved in the decision-making, I was just there. I'm now just the coach on match-day strategy. I just keep out of things now and just focus on the players and getting them ready for cricket," Gillespie said during the pre-match press conference ahead of the series finale in Rawalpindi.
When asked about the team combination and how he feels about his new role, the head coach issued a reply that had everyone laughing out loud.
"It's not for me to talk about now. I'm no longer a selector, so I'm probably not the person to ask."I'm getting splinters in my a** from sitting on the fence here," he added.
The third Test between Pakistan and England commences from Thursday, October 24 onwards in Rawalpindi. The series is level at 1-1 after the hosts ended their barren run in the second Test in Multan.
"I suppose there's a dad in me that comes out" - Jason Gillespie on protecting the squad from outside noise
Jason Gillespie took upon a monumental task to be the next candidate destined to turn around Pakistan's fortunes. His reign began with a humiliating 0-2 whitewash against Bangladesh on home soil.
But in the short while, since he has taken guard, he has been able to forge a strong connection with skipper Shan Masood and the rest of the squad as well.
"The last few years, Pakistan's Test cricket hasn't been where we'd like it to be. Any win is great, and any series win's fantastic. Just coming into this environment, as a coach, I'm very protective of players. They're the ones going out and representing their country. I suppose there's a dad in me that comes out and I want to protect all the boys from all outside noise and whatever," Gillespie added.
Pakistan have named the same combination from the previous Test. The playing XI includes only a solitary seam bowling option in Ameer Jamal as another turning track is expected.