Adam Hollioake among new-look Pakistan men's coaching team for Australia Tests

The former England, Surrey and Essex star joins a group led by team manager Naveed Akram Cheema and director Mohammad Hafeez following a post-Cricket World Cup clear-out

Nick Howson | 28/11/2023 at 17:49

Pakistan have appointed Adam Hollioake as batting coach for the three men's Tests against Australia starting next month.

The 52-year-old, who played four Tests and 35 one-day internationals for England, is part of a new-look support team.

A post-Cricket World Cup clearout has seen head coach Grant Bradburn and team director Mickey Arthur reassigned and replaced by Naveed Akram Cheema and Mohammad Hafeez, the new Pakistan men's team director.

Elsewhere, Umar Gul (fast-bowling) and Saeed Ajmal (spin) will lead the bowling group after the departure of Morne Morkel, while there are roles for Australian Simon Helmot (high-performance coach), Abdul Majeed (fielding) and Mansoor Rana (assistant team manager).

Drikus Saaiman, head of strength and conditioning, and physiotherapist Cliffe Deacon are among the few to keep their roles from the tournament in India.

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Hollioake played 39 times for England across formats (Paul Kane/Getty Images)

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Head coach Mohammad Hafeez will lead the squad in Australia (ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images)

Hollioake has only occasionally been seen in coaching roles since ending his professional playing career, working with Hong Kong, Boost Defenders and England Lions. He was enlisted by England men during the last Ashes series in Australia but was unable to join up after a close contact tested positive for Covid-19.

Amid the overhaul, Babar Azam stood down as captain across formats. Shan Masood will lead the group in Australia, with Shaheen Shah Afridi installed as T20 skipper.

While these changes are in place for the Test tour and will likely remain for the New Zealand T20Is, the decisions taken by the interim PCB management committee could yet be overturned following the scheduled elections in February.

Australia kick off their home summer with three Tests against Pakistan in Perth (December 14-18), before the series moves to Melbourne (26-30 December) and Sydney (January 3-7), hoping to maintain a winning run of 14 successive home wins in the format against the Men in Green.