Track Record of Waqar Younis With Pakistan Cricket

After Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi handed over control of all cricketing affairs to Waqar Younis, questions are being asked – whether this was the right decision or yet another blunder by the PCB? To find out, let’s take a look at his various PCB tenures ever since his the end of his playing days.

The First Stint (2006-2007)

Following his retirement, Waqar Younis was appointed as the bowling coach for the Pakistan cricket team from 2006-2007. During his tenure, Pakistan played in the ICC Champions Trophy in 2006, where they finished last in their group, disappointing many fans. Moreover, Pakistan was also accused for ball tampering in a Test series against England. Amid this scandal, he was relieved of his duties as bowling coach.

Short Stay (2009-2010)

The Burewala Express was appointed as the bowling and fielding coach of the Pakistan Cricket Team for the tour of Australia at the backend of 2009, the infamous Shahid Afridi biting the ball one.

The tour ended in disaster as Pakistan was whitewashed in the three-match Test series, five-match ODI series and one-off T20I, thus bringing an end to Waqar’s short stint with the national side.

The Head Coach (2010-2011)

In 2010, PCB hired Waqar Younis once again. This time as the Head Coach for the Pakistan cricket team.

During his tenure as the head coach, the Men in Green played 10 Test matches where they only won only 2 matches, drew 2 games, and lost 6 matches. Moreover, 18 more Tests were played with only 5 resulting in a win and a draw, the remaining 13 matches were lost, giving Pakistan more discomfiture.

Away from the Test matches, Pakistan played 18 T20s and won only 6, which once again let down the fans. In conclusion, Pakistan played 41 matches that year and only won 13 with a win percentage of a measly 28%.

Waqar Younis eventually stepped down as Pakistan’s Head Coach in 2011, stating it was because of personal reasons but it was rumored that there was some unrest in the side, particularly between Shahid Afridi and Waqar himself.

The Return (2014 – 2016)

Waqar was appointed as the head coach once again in May 2014. During this two year period, Pakistan had a mixed bag of results, including a disappointing campaign in the 2015 ODI World Cup.

Pakistan’s exit in the quarters in the ODI World Cup, followed by a humiliating group stage exit in the T20 World Cup in 2016. Just weeks after this disastrous campaign, Waqar handed in his resignation, lasting just around two years in the position.

Reports of disruption in harmony of the team, infamously with Umar Akmal, along with some political influences from the PCB higher-ups were cited as the main reasons behind his departure.

Final Appointment (2019-2021)

Then in 2019 Waqar Younis was once again appointed as the bowling coach on a 3 year contract, along with head coach, Misbah-ul-Haq. During that tenure, Pakistan was again poor, getting eliminated in the group stages of the 2019 World Cup in England leaving the fans furious.

Pakistan’s poor performance coupled with political tensions in the PCB led to turmoil once again. Right before the start of the 2021 T20 World Cup, which Pakistan was hot favorite for, Waqar and Misbah shocked the world as they announced their resignation.

The move did not sit well with the Pakistan fans as they believed that the dup should not have resigned before the mega-event in the UAE. Neverthless, Waqar’s yet another stint came to an abrupt end with mixed fortunes for Pakistan.

Now that he is set to take over all cricketing affairs in the PCB, including domestic, international, and selection, the future of Pakistan does not look too promising given his track record.