Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal appointed bowling coaches of Pakistan team

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday appointed former pacer Umar Gul and spin wizard Saeed Ajmal as bowling coaches of the Pakistan cricket team.

According to the PCB, Umar Gul and Saeed Ajmal’s inaugural assignments in these roles include the Test series against Australia scheduled from 14 December 2023 to 7 January 2024 and the T20I series against New Zealand from 12 to 21 January 2024.

🚨 Umar Gul and Saeed Ajmal have been appointed as the Fast Bowling and Spin Bowling Coaches, respectively, for the Pakistan Men’s Team

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— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) November 21, 2023

The appointment follows as South African former speedster Morne Morkel resigned as Pakistan’s bowling coach after the dismal performance of the Boys in Green in the ICC World Cup 2023. The PCB is making changes in the board and the team after Babar Azam’s resignation as captain of all formats.

Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Yousuf, Mohammad Hafeez, Sohail Tanvir have been assigned important designation in the PCB.

Umar Gul previously served as the bowling coach for the Pakistan Men’s Team during the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan, and the subsequent series against New Zealand at home.

Umar Gul made his international debut in 2003, representing Pakistan in 47 Tests (163 wickets at 34.06), 130 ODIs (179 wickets at 29.34), and 60 T20Is (85 wickets at 16.97) between 2003 and 2016.

Former world no. 1 ODI bowler Saeed Ajmal will take charge as the Spin Bowling Coach. Saeed, who made his international debut in 2008, represented Pakistan in 35 Tests, 113 ODIs, and 64 T20Is, picking up 447 wickets across the three formats.

It is to be noted that both Saeed Ajmal and Umar Gul were members of the 2009 T20 World Cup and 2012 Asia Cup winning squad.