'Cricket bhi online hi khel lo' - Pakistan head coach Gary Kirsten trolled after virtual meeting with players

Former South African cricketer and distinguished coach, who has previously coached the Indian team and the Proteas from 2008-11 and 2011-13, respectively, was recently acquired by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) as the white-ball head coach for Men's senior team. Former Pakistan international Azhar Mahmood will be serving as Kirsten's assistant for the designated stint.

With Kirsten already being pre-occupied with the Gujarat Titans in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League as their batting coach and mentor. GT's chances of making it to the Playoffs are slim, but they will be playing their last league stage game on May 16. Hence, it is obvious that the South African will miss out on being with the team as Pakistan tour Ireland for a three-match T20I series from May 10, playing their three games on alternate days.

In the interim, Jason Gillespie, the freshly-instated head coach of Pakistan for Tests, will act as a substitute for Kirsten, with Mahmood acting as his subordinate. In the case of GT qualifying for the playoffs, Kirsten might miss a game or two of the forthcoming England tour as well, where Pakistan will be playing four T20Is.

Also Read: If Pakistan lose World Cup, the board will blame Kirsten or Babar Azam: Rashid Latif

Ahead of their Ireland tour, a bunch of Pakistan players were spotted sitting in a conference room connecting with their head coach through videoconferencing. PCB shared a video of the head coach's first meeting with the team after his appointment.

However, the South African diverting his attention from his ongoing GT stint and instead multitasking to kick-start proceedings for his new role with PCB, stirred up widespread debates and heated comments from netizens. “How do players learn from a coach through a laptop screen?” a user reacted on X.

Check out some hilarious reactions: