Pakistan appoints Australian fielding expert as fielding coach across all formats: Report

Pakistan has appointed experienced Australian fielding expert Shane McDermott as their all-format fielding coach ahead of the upcoming T20I tour of Bangladesh. McDermott, known for his technical acumen and global experience, has been recommended by Pakistan’s new white-ball head coach, Mike Hesson. He is expected to join the team before the start of the three-match T20I series. An official announcement from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is likely later this week, according to a report by Telecom Asia Sport.

The 44-year-old McDermott holds a High Performance Level Three Coaching Certificate and has been part of various coaching setups across international and domestic cricket. He has worked with Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Cricket Australia, Western Australia Cricket Association, and Cricket Tasmania. McDermott's international experience provides a distinct advantage to Pakistan as they move to strengthen their squad as they work towards their busy schedule.

Between 2022 and 2023, McDermott served as Bangladesh’s assistant fielding coach but stepped down due to differences with then-head coach Chandika Hathurusinghe. Prior to that, he spent three years as fielding coach of Sri Lanka’s senior men’s team and also worked with the Sri Lanka A squad. Most recently, he was with Afghanistan during their impressive run to the semi-finals of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, earning acclaim for improving the team’s fielding standards.

McDermott Brings Global Experience to Strengthen Pakistan's Backroom Staff

After leaving Bangladesh, McDermott was subsequently appointed to Afghanistan's coaching staff, where his expertise heavily contributed to Afghanistan's first World Cup campaign in June 2024. His coaching was credited with honing several of the Afghan fielding unit's skills during high-stakes, pressured matches.

See Also: Bangladesh head coach leaves Sri Lanka tour: Know the reason

Earlier in his career, McDermott held various roles with Cricket Australia from 2012 to 2019, including interim assistant and fielding coach, and also served as analyst and fielding coach for the Australia A team. Meanwhile, Pakistan is preparing for a busy calendar, starting with the tour of Bangladesh and followed by a five-match T20I series in the West Indies. Earlier this week, PCB appointed Azhar Mahmood as acting Test head coach and is expected to name Salman Agha as all-format captain, replacing Shan Masood and Mohammad Rizwan in Tests and ODIs, respectively.