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Today sees the start of a Test for Pakistan in more ways than one. Not only will Misbah-ul-Haq’s men face Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi, they will do so without their coach of the previous 18 months, Waqar Younis, on the sidelines.
Waqar was not everyone’s cup of tea but there are few who could deny he did a good job in trying circumstances. He helped pilot the side to the semi-finals of 2010’s World Twenty20 and the World Cup earlier this year, insisting on high levels of fitness and drilling the players with an intensity that would have had former Australia coach Bobby Simpson purring with pleasure.
And he was also strong off the field too, not least in the way he stood up during the spot-fixing scandal that crashed down on Pakistan cricket like an avalanche from Everest last August.
Waqar was, more often than not, the spokesperson for what was going on within the Pakistan team, and through it all he never shied away from answering the many tough questions that came his way.
His reported falling out with Shahid Afridi was a minus mark for both men but, on the plus side of the ledger he forged a solid working relationship with Misbah as well as mentoring the current crop of fast bowlers.
It all begs the question of whether Pakistan cricket, which seems to be heading in the right direction under Misbah’s leadership, can continue its forward momentum now that Waqar no longer has one hand on the wheel.
With chairman of selectors Mohsin Khan stepping into Waqar’s shoes on an interim basis while a long-term successor is chosen, Misbah believes everyone will cope with the changed circumstances.
“I think he (Waqar) did a wonderful job and now everyone knows and realises what their roles are within the team,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter that the coach has now changed because Mohsin is also passionate about Pakistan cricket. The main thing is the players — they must know their roles and realise what they are supposed to do. That’s the key for our team now and I think the players are doing that very well.”
The coaching position has been something of a revolving door for Pakistan since the death of Bob Woolmer in 2007, but each holder of the baseball glove and clipboard in recent years has made telling contributions which emphasise the importance of the role.
Woolmer himself revived the career of Younis Khan and briefly got the best out of Shoaib Akhtar; Geoff Lawson helped take the side to the final of the World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007; and Intikhab Alam was coach when Pakistan won that event in England two years later.
Ironically, Sri Lanka has only just resolved its own coaching conundrum. After Trevor Bayliss’s departure following defeat in the 2011 World Cup final, Stuart Law did the role on a temporary basis before leaving to take charge of Bangladesh, and Geoff Marsh, the former Australia and Zimbabwe coach, has only just stepped in to fill the void.
Marsh, whose most recent coaching experience has been with Indian Premier League side Pune, has plenty on his plate, most immediately the need to halt an 11-match winless streak in Tests while, at the same time, managing a transition period following the loss of legends Muttiah Muralidaran, Sanath Jayasuriya and Chaminda Vaas.
The early signs for Marsh have been good, with positive noises about his style coming from within the Sri Lanka camp. But cricket, like most things these days, is a results-driven business.
It all means that just as events on the field will command our attention over the next six weeks, the way the players and coaches on both sides settle into new working relationships may turn out to be just as intriguing.
Brian Murgatroyd is a former media manager for England and Australia teams and was head of media and communications for the ICC for four years.
