KUALA LUMPUR – The Malaysian Cricket Association (MCA) will announce the new national men’s team head coach who will be replacing Bilal Asad this Friday.
MCA president Mohammed Iqbal Ali Kassim Ali in a statement said the announcement will be done as part of a broad structural revamp to bring the national team up to the world ranking of 25th for the men’s team and 26th for the women’s team.
“MCA is aware of recent media commentary and speculation circulating with regard to various aspects of the national team. In the interests of transparency and governance, MCA will continue to communicate official announcements at the appropriate time,” he said.
This comes as MCA had previously announced that it will not extend Bilal’s contract, which ended on November 30.
Bilal, however, was reported to have been taken aback by the move – as he was told by the association that his service was not extended on the very last day of his contract.
National cricketers were also reported to be upset with how MCA ended Bilal’s service, leading to a boycott of the selection match for the national team last Thursday.
Iqbal Ali also said MCA will be announcing the list of players who will be offered player contracts for 2024.
“An exponential effort and increased resources are required for this next phase, all within our system will need to work harder and focus on the future. We must look beyond being just a powerhouse in Asean cricket. Cricket is a global multi-billion dollar sport that commands millions of viewers.
“This is both an opportunity to raise our nation’s presence on the international stage and to bring our talented players into the lucrative world of high performance cricket,” he added. – December 4, 2023