LAHORE: Former Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq has decided to resign from the Pakistan Cricket Board’s selection committee, sources close to the former cricketer said Tuesday.
The sources said Misbah has informed the PCB of his decision and will serve a notice period before formally stepping down from the role.
The development comes a day after the cricket board announced that seven players and two coaches, Sarfaraz Ahmed and Umar Gul, were released from the Pakistan Test squad ahead of the third Test against England in Birmingham.
Those released included Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Aamir Jamal, Muhammad Awais Zafar and Khurram Shahzad, according to a press release issued by the board.
The PCB named seven replacements for the third Test, comprising five uncapped players and two players with Test experience.
Mike Hesson and Ashley Noffke will replace Sarfaraz and Gul in the backroom staff, the board said.
The sweeping changes came after Pakistan suffered heavy defeats in the first two matches of the ongoing Test series against England. Pakistan lost the first Test by an innings and 103 runs before England won the second Test by 194 runs.
Sarfaraz was appointed Pakistan’s red-ball head coach by the PCB on April 18, ahead of the team’s two-match Test tour of Bangladesh. Pakistan was swept 2-0 in his first assignment in charge. Pakistan then toured the West Indies for a two-match Test series, which ended 1-1.
