LAHORE: Six foreign coaches including three Test cricketers will be involved in the second year of the Engro Cricket Coaching Project under the PCB Pathway Cricket Programme that commences from today.
Around 120 players from U-13 to U-19 age group will be provided training by foreign as well as local coaches from July 10 to August 10 in Lahore and Muridke. For the programme, PCB and Engro Corporation entered into a three-year agreement last year, on the basis of which, Engro Corporation is sponsoring the foreign coaches involved in the programme.
The Elite coaches include Australia’s Geoff Lawson, New Zealand’s Scott McLaren (strength and conditioning coach), South Africa’s Herschelle Gibbs, United Kingdom’s Gordon Parsons and Julien Fountain and Zimbabwe’s Tatenda Taibu. The coaches that have played international cricket include Australia’s Lawson (46 Tests, 79 ODIs), South Africa’s Gibbs (90 Tests, 248 ODIs, and 23 T20Is) and Zimbabwe’s Taibu (28 Tests, 150 ODIs, and 17 T20Is).
At one time, five coaches will work in the coaching project, with Gibbs working with the U-13 and U-16 players only. He will depart on 16th July and will be replaced by Lawson, who will arrive on 22nd July to work couple of days with the U-16 players before joining the U-19 cricket clinic.
Parsons, who has worked as bowling and head coach in South Africa and the UK, was involved in last year’s programme and remained bowling coach during Pakistan U-19’s home series against Bangladesh in November 2022. Parsons will be bowling coach in the programme, while former Pakistan Men’s fielding coach Fountain will work as fielding coach in the programme.
As many as 25 U-13 players selected for the programme will undergo training at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) from July 13 to 25. The players born on or after 1 September 2010 are eligible for selection.
Furthermore, the players have been selected considering their performances in the Inter-Region U-13 One-Day Tournament which was held this year from 12 March to 5 May and the players who were part of the 100 Programme last year. The players that have performed in the U-13 tournament, but are overage have been migrated to U-16 level. More details on the criteria for U-13 players’ selection are available here.
As many as 37 U-16 players will take part in the programme at the Muridke Country Club (MCC) from 10 to 25 July. The players born on or after 1 September 2007 have been selected to feature in the programme.
The players are selected after performing in the Inter-Region U-16 One-Day Tournament which was held this year from 12 March to 6 May and who were part of 100 programme last year. Like U-13, the players that have performed in the U-16 tournament, but are overage have been progressed to U-19 level. More details on the criteria for this age-group selection is available here.
Around 58 U-19 players in two groups will work under elite coaches at the NCA and MCC concurrently from 26 July to 10 August. The eligibility criterion for the U-19 players is 1 September 2004. The names of the players will be announced in due course.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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