Wasim Jaffer appointed as head coach of Punjab’s state team ahead of domestic season

Former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer was recently appointed as the new head coach of Punjab’s state team. The Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) unanimously chose Jaffer over former Australian fast bowler Shaun Tait for the role.

There had been rumours that Jaffer might be taking over as the head coach of Punjab Kings from Trevor Bayliss for IPL 2025. He has experience as the batting coach of PBKS from 2019 to 2021 and also as a batting consultant. However, he stepped down from the role before the IPL 2024 auction.

Jaffer has previously worked as head coach with the Uttarakhand and Odisha state cricket teams. However, he faced accusations of selection bias during his time in Uttarakhand, and he resigned from his post following that.

We are confident that Jaffer will motivate the team: PCA President Amarjeet Singh Mehta

With the appointment of Jaffer as Punjab’s head coach, the president of the Punjab Cricket Association, Amarjeet Singh Mehat, took centre stage and talked about how the board did not want to miss an opportunity to bring him on board as part of their coaching staff. 

“Our main aim is to win the Ranji Trophy and also the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, so we unanimously decided to appoint him as the head coach. With his experience and expertise, we are confident that Jaffer will motivate the team to achieve success. He is one of the best longer format players in the country, and we did not want to miss out on the opportunity of having him on board,” Mehta told Sportstar.

“We have done reasonably well in white-ball cricket lately, but we want to be consistent in red-ball cricket and that’s why we thought of looking at Jaffer,” he added. 

Last season, Punjab won the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy under former Indian cricketer Aavishkar Salvi. With Salvi moving to the National Cricket Academy, the PCA went with Jaffer as their new coach.