A significant shift is underway in Pakistan women’s cricket, with the Pakistan Cricket Board moving to end Wahab Riaz‘s role and bring in a foreign head coach to lead the side. The board’s decision is driven in part by the need to build a competitive squad ahead of the 2028 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, a tournament Pakistan is scheduled to host.
Wahab began mentoring the women’s team in December 2025, stepping into a programme that had cycled through no fewer than six different head coaches since 2020. However, results under his watch have not met expectations. The side struggled in bilateral series against Sri Lanka and delivered underwhelming performances in the Women’s T20 format, compounding the frustration that had already built up from a poor ICC Women’s 50-over World Cup campaign in India, where Pakistan found the going difficult against Sri Lanka among others.
As reported by NDTV, the coaching instability predates Wahab’s arrival. Muhammad Wasim had been removed from the head coach position in November 2024 after that same World Cup disappointment, and the PCB is now seeking a more durable solution through an overseas appointment. As recently as October 27, 2026, Wahab was named coach for the Pakistan women’s squad at the ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy 2026, making the reported change all the more notable in its timing.
Why is the PCB favouring a foreign appointment?
The board’s preference for an overseas coach is grounded in historical precedent as much as present-day concern. Foreign coaches Mark Coles and David Hemp are both credited with overseeing some of Pakistan women’s stronger performances. Coles first coached the side during 2017-2019 and returned for a brief stint in 2023, and the results from those periods have shaped the PCB’s thinking.
The combination of recent underperformance and the scale of the 2028 hosting responsibility has reinforced the view inside the board that fresh international expertise is required to stabilise the programme and raise standards.
When will the new coach be in place?
The PCB has set a firm internal deadline for completing the appointment. A source indicated to NDTV that the new coach will be in place before the women’s team’s next international assignment, which is a tour of the West Indies. No formal announcement confirming Wahab’s exit has been made at the time of writing, and the identity of the candidates under consideration has not been disclosed publicly.
The board’s intent, however, appears clear: to have a new coaching structure operational well before that tour gets under way, giving the incoming coach time to assess the squad and begin preparations for the road to the 2028 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
