Dubai: Kabir Khan who stepped down as coach of the UAE cricket team to take charge of the Afghanistan national team, galvanised the UAE into a winning unit. His tenure saw the UAE lifting the Pepsi International Cricket Council World Division II title and qualifying for the ICC Intercontinental Cup where it narrowly missed making it to the Twenty20 World Cup qualifiers despite some inspired performances.
In an exclusive interview to Gulf News immediately after finalising his decision to sign up for Afghanistan, which has been eager to get his services for a long time, the former Pakistan Test star called for the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) to contract players to represent UAE.
It is for a second time that Khan is saying goodbye to the UAE. He had earlier stepped down in 2008 to coach Afghanistan and was instrumental in guiding them to the Twenty20 World Cup in West Indies before returning to coach the UAE team again a year ago.
Khan's second term as Afghanistan coach will commence with the Twenty20 World Cup qualifiers in Dubai.
Why have you decided to step down and how has your experience as coach of the UAE team been during the second stint?
I totally enjoyed my tenure. The Emirates Cricket Board was very supportive, especially Dilawar Mani [ECB chief executive] and Mazhar Khan [ECB administrator]. They provided me with all facilities I had requested. Selection committee always respected my views about the team, too. The results were also there because we all worked as a team. It is a shame that I have to go and it is purely because of my family problems and it has nothing at all to do with the cricket board.
So will you be based in Afghanistan?
No. I will be based in Pakistan but I can give more time to my family in Pakistan. I am going as a friend and will always be a friend of the ECB. I have offered my services for ECB even if I am the coach of Afghanistan in case the next coach needs my assistance for the implementation and continuity of plans that I have briefed them to do for the future.
So how long and till what date will you be here especially with a busy schedule ahead for the UAE?
The ECB wants me to guide the boys for the Intercontinental Cup match against Scotland. That will be my last tournament for UAE and I will leave immediately [after that].
Does that mean you may be coaching the Afghanistan team for the World Cup qualifiers?
Yes, for the World Cup qualifiers in UAE, I will be the coach of the Afghanistan team.
Though you have decided to leave, you were very busy guiding the Under-16 boys…
I am busy conducting the trials for the juniors. Grooming a good Under-19 team is one of my two-year plans for the UAE.
What do you think is needed to get the best out of the UAE team?
The present UAE team is a very balanced side. When I took charge they had many issues especially fitness. I can now proudly say they are at the top of their fitness levels. Another thing I did was to create a stand-by team. You need more stand-by players to bring more competition for the slots in the team. With this idea in mind I proposed the Under-19 development plan. We need youngsters who can step into the shoes of the seniors in the team. Although some of the present players are very fit now it is a fact that they are getting older. We need good replacements for every slot in the team.
Has non-availability of top players for international matches been a problem?
We need more number of players waiting to step in. If there are more numbers then automatically quality will come in. This will also give us more options as well. The options should be very good as well.
Can you elaborate on what you mean by options?
For example, if you want to replace any of the senior players, they should be at least 80 per cent as good as the senior player. If we have such players then we can groom them.
You have coached UAE as well as Afghanistan. What is the basic difference between the two teams?
The basic difference between Afghanistan and UAE is that Afghanistan has got full-time cricketers while UAE players have to work to earn their living. So UAE players are part-time cricketers and not full-time cricketers. In the Afghanistan team, all the players are paid to play. In UAE the players come to play and train only after doing their job.
Do you have any solution to this problem?
I have discussed this matter in detail with Dilawar Mani. In future, if it is possible, we must start contracting players. If we start that, there will be a very good future for not only cricket in the UAE but also the UAE team. It is not that we will always continue to get committed players like Khurram Khan, Arshad Ali and Saqib Ali. They are such committed players that whether you pay them or not does not matter, they will still come and play. Now time and situations have changed here and there are chances that you may not get players like them and good players will not be available. For that we need to take some immediate steps and get players on contract so that we can make teams at our will. At least we should have seven to eight players whom we know will be available for all matches and training.
Does junior cricket have a future here? Is it a situation of grooming them and losing them as most of them leave UAE for higher studies and all the effort of grooming them as future UAE players is wasted?
There can be many plans to avoid this syndrome. Our cricket board should discuss with the coach that if they find players with good potential who can be our future players then the board should offer them assistance for education and help them to stay on here. Of course there are visa issues and other factors in staying here but that can be sorted out by the board by offering them contracts. Parents will also be happy if the board would sponsor their child's education. Availability of players has always been a factor all the time and for that the board has to work towards it.
