Australian fielding specialist Shane McDermott has been named Pakistan’s new fielding coach across all formats. He will begin his role with the upcoming three-match T20I series against Bangladesh. As per Telecom Asia Sport, an official announcement is expected later this week.
McDermott’s appointment comes on the recommendation of Pakistan’s new white-ball head coach Mike Hesson, who highlighted the Australian’s extensive international coaching experience. The 44-year-old holds a High-Performance Level Three Coaching Certificate and has previously worked with teams from Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Australia.
Between 2012 and 2019, McDermott was involved with Cricket Australia’s National Cricket Centre in multiple roles, including assistant coach, fielding coach, and analyst for the Australia A team. He later served as Sri Lanka’s senior men’s fielding coach for three years and also led the Sri Lanka A team.
In the 2022–2023 season, he was part of Bangladesh’s coaching setup as the assistant fielding coach. Most recently, McDermott played a key role in Afghanistan’s coaching staff, helping them reach the semi-finals of the ICC T20 World Cup in June 2024.
In addition to McDermott’s appointment, the Pakistan Cricket Board has named former all-rounder Azhar Mahmood as the acting head coach of the Test team. Reports also suggest a major leadership change, with Salman Agha likely to be named all-format captain, replacing Shan Masood and Mohammad Rizwan.
Pakistan’s calendar is packed, starting with the Bangladesh series, followed by a five-match T20I series against the West Indies.
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