Grant Bradburn steps down from Pakistan cricket's head of high performance coaching role

Lahore: Former New Zealand cricketer Grant Bradburn has stepped down as Pakistan’s Head of High Performance Coaching to pursue new opportunities, ending a three-year stint in the country, the PCB announced on Friday. The former New Zealand Test spinner also served Pakistan cricket as the national side’s fielding coach from September 2018 to June 2020, before taking on the development of coaching responsibilities. [caption id=“attachment_8999931” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Representational image. Reuters[/caption] “It has been an honour and privilege to serve Pakistan, providing challenge and support, to drive the players, coaches and teams forward. I will leave PCB grateful for the wonderful opportunities and the experiences I have gained,” Bradburn was quoted as saying in a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) release. Bradburn is the fifth high-profile resignation since former Test captain Ramiz Raja took charge as PCB chief. Soon after Ramiz was elected, the head coach of the Pakistan team, Misbah-ul-Haq and bowling coach, Waqar Younis had resigned followed by the resignations of CEO Wasim Khan and apparently now Babar Hameed, the head of Marketing. The 55 year-old Bradburn said the COVID-19 regulations had made it difficult for him to spend time with his family. “My wife Maree and three children have also sacrificed a lot in allowing me to serve Pakistan cricket. Covid-19 regulations made it challenging for them to visit Pakistan and feel the warmth, love and friendship this country offers. “It is now time for me to prioritise family and move forward to the next coaching challenge.” An off-spinner who played seven Tests and 11 ODIs from 1990 to 2001 for New Zealand, Bradburn also coached New Zealand A and New Zealand U19. He had been handed the responsibility of raising the overall standard of player support personnel across all the high performance centres of the country. Director High Performance, Nadeem Khan said: “Grant served Pakistan cricket with passion and dedication. He was always full of energy and ideas, a number of which he implemented following the restructuring of the National High Performance Centre. “I thank Grant for his contributions to Pakistan cricket and wish him well in his future endeavours,” he added. There are clear indications that there are going to be more high-profile departures from the board in the next few days as Ramiz has made it clear he wants to implement his own blueprint for the improvement of Pakistan cricket and restructure working of the PCB. The former Test opener has also insisted on pay cuts for top positions in the board. The board has already published an advertisement inviting applications for the position of CEO but at a lower pay package than the one given to Wasim.