Mushtaq Ahmed, the current spin coach for Bangladesh and a former leg-spinner for Pakistan, has stated that he is willing to take over as coach of the Pakistani cricket team, but he has expressed a “fear” of doing so because of the uncertainty that comes with being in that specific hot seat.
After losing the first two games of the current England tour in August 2026, Pakistan drastically altered their Test lineup. Sarfaraz Ahmed was fired by the Pakistan Cricket Board as Test head coach after the team lost by an innings and 103 runs at Headingley and by 194 runs at Lord’s. As Pakistan got ready for the series’ final Test, white-ball head coach Mike Hesson was given command of the Test team.
The Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) decision to send seven players home from a tour of England after they lost the second Test at Lord’s is a recent illustration of how rash the board’s decisions can be. The PCB sent seven substitute players, including five uncapped players, to England instead of playing the last Test, which sparked controversy.
Mushtaq said, “I would love to do that for my country, of course. Especially at this time. Obviously, I need only one thing. Sometimes you get scared of working for your own country when the people don’t respect you and they sack you because of a few emotional decisions here and there… When you see those things, people getting sacked on a tour, you get worried and scared.”
Five uncapped cricket players were among the new players who took the place of seven players who were sent home from the trip. In an interview with the BBC Stumped Podcast, Mushtaq stated that while he would be thrilled to take on the job of coaching Pakistan, more stability and respect would be necessary.
Muhammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Khurram Shahzad, Aamir Jamal, and Muhammad Awais Jafar were among the players who were eliminated. Saim Ayub, Abdullah Fazal, Arafat Minhas, Mohammed Imran Jr., Said Baig, Mohammad Imran, and Razaullah took their place.
He further added, “I think those are the things that, if you can get sorted, every Pakistani cricketer who is coaching, not only myself, would love to serve the country. This is the best time for me to take that challenge, bring those players to their best, make them confident about international cricket and build a unit that can genuinely challenge opposition teams.”
With one Test remaining in the tour, Muhammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Khurram Shahzad, Aamir Jamal, and Muhammad Awais Jafar were returned home to Pakistan. Two of these seven were punished even though they did not participate in any games. They were replaced by former Pakistani players Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal, as well as Arafat Minhas, Mohammed Imran Jr., Said Baig, Mohammad Imran, and Razaullah.
