Mushtaq assistant coach

Weeks after failing to get a recall on Pakistan8217;s tour of England, leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed has been chosen as the national cricket team8217;s new assistant coach, officials said today. 8220;Mushtaq has been appointed assistant coach for the ICC Champions Trophy. It8217;s only for one tour,8221; said Cricket Board spokesman Abbas Zaidi.

The 36-year-old Mushtaq has been in top form for Sussex in England, having taken 89 wickets for them in the 2006 season, and was widely tipped for a recall during Pakistan8217;s recently concluded Test series in England. Mushtaq played the most recent of his 52 Tests in 2003. He has 185 Test and 161 one-day wickets.

His latest appointment was apparently at the request of Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq and coach Bob Woolmer, as they want a former player to be groomed as Woolmer8217;s eventual successor. Woolmer8217;s tenure is set to end after next year8217;s World Cup in the West Indies.