Mohsin should be coach if he is wanted: Akram

Former skipper Wasim Akram believes selector-cum-coach Mohsin Khan should be given an extended run with the Pakistan cricket team if the boys are comfortable under him.

Akram feels that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) should take into consideration the opinion of the cricketers before zeroing down on the national coach. © AFP

Akram feels that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) should take into consideration the opinion of the cricketers before zeroing down on the national coach.

"Mohsin Khan seems to be doing a good job with the team. Whether his short term role as a selector-cum-coach should be converted into a full-time job I am not sure because the new PCB management will surely have some plans," Akram said.

"On the face of it, if the boys are comfortable under Mohsin as coach, then he should be given an extended run. I am all for people who are hard-working. Mohsin seems to be gelling well with the team and the boys are looking calm under him.

"Mohsin is a wise man and also very calm by nature. This is a great plus for someone to be a coach of the Pakistan team. Another thing that works for Mohsin is that he prefers being in the background. This again is a great virtue for a Pakistan coach," he added.

Former Australian cricketer Dean Jones has already applied for the coach's job and even Akram seemed to have backed him of all the other contenders that include former England all-rounder Dermot Reeve and Pakistan's former Test pacer Aaqib Javed.

However, Akram said at the end of the day it is the discretion of the board to decide who is best suited to replace Waqar Younis and his opinion doesn't matter really.

"Last week, the Dubai media quoted me that I favoured Dean Jones as Waqar's successor. To be honest, my opinion doesn't count. It all depends on what the players need and what the Pakistan Board wants," Akram wrote in his column for a website.

"I think it's not about a foreign or a home coach, it's about the comfort level of the players. That is very important in Pakistan. So, I guess the PCB should take the players' opinion before appointing somebody on a permanent basis."

The 45-year-old former pacer, who took 414 Test wickets, besides scalping 502 wickets in ODIS, also praised the Pakistan team's performance in the first Test against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi, saying it was really encouraging.

"Pakistan's performance in the first Test against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi has been really encouraging," Akram said.

He maintained that the youngsters had an appetite for victory and were not affected by the spot-fixing trial, which includes three Pakistani cricketers.

"The spot-fixing trial in London had no impact as the young team is hungry to showcase their talent and do well for the nation," the former Test cricketer said.