da luck： Bob Woolmer is on the verge of resigning as Pakistan coach, according to a report in today’s Daily Telegraph. The article also says that Zaheer Abbas, the team manager, is also prepared to walk at the end of the series
Cricinfo staff24-Aug-2006
Inzamam-ul-Haq and Bob Woolmer: rumours of a rift © Getty Images
Bob Woolmer is on the verge of resigning as Pakistan coach, according to a report in today’s Daily Telegraph. The article also says that Zaheer Abbas, the team manager, too is prepared to walk at the end of the series.The paper claims that sources in the Pakistan camp indicated that Woolmer was at the end of his tether and that his “relations with Zaheer and captain Inzamam-ul-Haq have descended into acrimony”.While the team has presented a united front in the last four days, Bose reports that behind the scenes all is far from well. Inzamam is said to have lost faith in the coach and believes that he is briefing the Pakistan Cricket Board behind his back, while Woolmer is angry at Zaheer’s “lack of focused leadership” during the crisis.Bose says that the Pakistan dressing-room on Sunday was “a confused and angry place where there was a lot of shouting and different advice being thrown at Inzamam”. He continues that language difficulties meant that Inzamam was not initially fully aware of what his side was being accused of, and that the seriousness of it all only became clear when he returned to the dressing-room.Woolmer apparently gave two or three options to the players, but none included refusing to resume after the interval. “I am not sure how much of what Woolmer said was understood by Inzamam,” a source said. “Inzi decided the team would not go out.”Thereafter, relations have deteriorated by the day.