Kabul, Feb 24 (IANS) The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has appointed Richard Pybus as the new head coach of the Afghanistan men’s national team on Tuesday. Pybus will replace former coach Jonathan Trott, who stepped down from the role after the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.

“The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) is pleased to announce the appointment of Richard Pybus as the Head Coach of the Afghanistan National Team. He will join AfghanAtalan ahead of the upcoming white-ball series against Sri Lanka in March,” the board said in a statement.

Pybus has a long coaching experience. He is a three-time ICC Cricket World Cup-winning head coach and director of cricket, having played a central role in establishing high-performance systems across teams.

He previously served as Head Coach, Director of Cricket, and Head of High Performance for the West Indies cricket team between 2013 and 2019. During that period, the West Indies achieved a historic treble in 2016, with their men’s, women’s, and U-19 teams winning ICC world titles in the same calendar year.

Pybus also coached the Pakistan cricket team and guided them to the 1999 ICC Cricket World Cup final, where they finished runners-up to Australia. He has also held a senior leadership role with the Bangladesh cricket team and enjoyed significant success in South African domestic and franchise cricket, securing nine championship titles, which is a national record. He was twice named South African Cricket Coach of the Year.

Renowned for player development, Pybus has worked closely with leading cricketers including Mohammad Rizwan, Faf du Plessis, and Dale Steyn.

Meanwhile, the Afghanistan cricket team suffered a shocking group stage exit at the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026. The team was able to win only two matches out of four in the first round and lost to New Zealand and South Africa, who proceeded to the Super 8s stage from the group.

–IANS

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