KARACHI, Apr 9: Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad has turned down an offer from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to take over as the batting coach of the national cricket team. The director-general cricket of the PCB confirmed that he had informed the board that he would not be able to immediately join the team and accompany them on the tour to the West Indies because of prior commitments."As it is, I believe you cannot change the technique or style of a batsman once he is in the national team. I think the main job of the batting coach is to guide the batsmen in different matches on how to adjust to different pitches and how to counter specific opposing bowlers," Miandad said. The former Pakistan coach said while he was always available to serve Pakistan cricket, he would not be able to go to the West Indies "I am committed for a few months but I am there to guide the players in the training camp and work with the youngsters in the National Cricket Academy. I will discuss taking this responsibility full time after the West Indies tour," Miandad added. However, the sources close to Miandad said that he was not comfortable with the idea of working in a support staff team headed by chief coach Waqar Younis. "Miandad believes that if he is to be successful as a batting coach he will require independence to implement his plans," the source said "Miandad being a very senior player also obviously wants certain powers to work as batting coach," the source added.
