Days before Vijay Hazare Trophy, Wasim Jaffer resigns as Uttarakhand coach

Wasim Jaffer was appointed to the position last March after he had announced his retirement from all forms of the sport. The Uttarakhand Cricket Association is yet to accept his resignation.

Former India opener Wasim Jaffer tendered his resignation as Uttarakhand coach days before the team was scheduled to depart for the Vijay Hazare Trophy, which begins on February 20.

Jaffer was appointed to the position last March after he had announced his retirement from all forms of the game. Reasons for Jaffer’s sudden resignation are not known but officials in Uttarakhand confirmed that the domestic cricket legend had e-mailed his resignation. The association is yet to accept Jaffer’s resignation.

After he took over as coach, Jaffer included three players — Jay Bista, Iqbal Abdullah and Samad Fallah — in his team. He also picked his own support staff. Uttarakhand, however, failed to come up with any decent performances, winning just one game out of the five in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Jaffer, who could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, had earlier said he was looking forward to his coaching career. “After I retired I wanted to take up a coaching role. A few teams contacted me but I liked the way Uttarakhand expressed their vision. When I was playing for Vidarbha, I was also in a mentoring role. But to become a head coach will be a challenge as I have to look after all areas,” Jaffer had said after taking charge as Uttarakhand coach.

He had also said he would coach just for one season since he did not want a long-term contract. “I didn’t want a long term role as I want to check how things progress in the coaching role. Uttarakhand is a new team with long-term goals and I realise it will be a challenge to coach a smaller team. They have the potential to do well and the boys are keen to learn. At the moment, there is no clarity when the domestic season will start due to the pandemic,” Jaffer had said.

Jaffer is also a batting consultant with Bangladesh Cricket Academy. However, he hasn’t been able to travel to Dhaka because of the travel restrictions owing to the pandemic. He is also the batting coach of Kings XI Punjab in the IPL.

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