The musical chair drama around coaches has started in Pakistan after the team's loss to India in the Champions Trophy on Feb 23 in Dubai. This was the host and defending champions' second straight loss, and with that, they are on the brink of elimination from the tournament.

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Amid the backlash, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is set to sack the support staff and interim coach Aaqib Javed. This is not the first time the PCB, in the name of overhaul, is set to replace the coaches while it is the players who, according to former cricketers, are the problem.

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“Obviously there is backlash over the team's performance in the CT. The Board hasn't decided as yet on whether the team will have separate head coaches (for red and white ball teams), but one thing is certain, the current support staff will be overhauled now after the poor show in the Champions Trophy,” reported news agency PTI, quoting a source.

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Pakistan had appointed Javed as interim coach after ODI Gary Kirsten had resigned six months into the tenure. Test coach Jason Gillespie followed the suit over too much interference by the board, and Javed took over red-ball duties as well. The two greats were introduced as the coaches amid much fanfare as part of Pakistan's overhaul post-ODI World Cup 2023 and T20 World Cup 2024 debacle.

"But the way the Board has been changing coaches and selectors since last year, it will be a challenge to find other candidates for these positions,” PTI further added, citing the same source.

“The PCB, after the way Kirsten and Gillespie resigned, is not going to get a choice of field when it comes to foreign coaches, so most probably the PCB will look at former players for the job,” it further added.

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Pakistan are due to travel to New Zealand for a full-fledged tour from March 16 to April 5 after the Champions Trophy, which includes three ODIs and five T20Is.