Former Australian all-rounder and two-time 50-over World Cup winner Shane Watson is just a few steps away from becoming the highest-paid head coach of the Pakistan national team. The PCB, since the arrival of new boss Mohsin Naqvi, has been looking for a new coach who can positively drive the team towards success.
The Green Army are looking to start anew after getting rid of their entire team management led by Mickey Arthur, including team manager Mohammad Hafeez. Shane Watson is part of the new plan and is that personality that the PCB desperately wants to integrate into their system. This move is being made mainly because Watson himself had been a part of several title-winning teams and also has a bit of experience in terms of coaching.
PCB meets all of Shane Watson’s demands to join as head coach
Pakistan is also looking to sign Shane Watson so that the Shaheen Afridi-led team can perform well in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup in June in the US and West Indies. In the last two editions under Babar Azam’s captaincy, Pakistan came close to winning their second WC T20 title but missed out on both occasions.
The Men in Green, after losing to eventual champions Australia in the 2021 semi-finals, reached the final of the 2022 edition, where they lost to Jos Buttler’s England. But with Shane Watson as the new head coach, Pakistan will look to take a step forward and clinch the elusive title for the second time.
According to reports coming from the country, PCB is more than willing to accept all the demands of Shane Watson to take over as head coach as soon as possible. The board has offered him a sum of 4.6 million Pakistani rupees per month, which will make the Australian the highest-paid coach Pakistan has ever seen.
Shane Watson is currently bypassing the proceedings of Pakistan Super League team Quetta Gladiators as head coach for the ongoing season (9). He signed the contract with Gladiators last December and under his guidance, the Rilee Rossouw-led team finished fourth in the points table and is scheduled to play Islamabad in Playoff 1.
The 2007 and 2015 CWC winner knows the Pakistan cricket circuit, not because he is the coach of Quetta but because he played for the team from 2018 to 2020 after spending 2 seasons with Islamabad United.
Shane Watson expresses concern over PCB officials fluctuation
According to the same source who reported that Watson is being offered over Rs 4 million, the Australian is reluctant to join as head coach due to the turmoil that PCB goes through from time to time. The board is known for changing its head coaches and officials and that is becoming a big concern for Shane Watson.
But the PCB is actively working to persuade the two-time CWC and Champions trophy winner and the situation is expected to become clearer in the coming weeks.