Gul had remarked that the sudden drop in temperature left the Pakistani pacers looking "stiff".
Umar Gul has clarified that his remarks on the cold weather after Pakistan’s crushing loss in the first Test against England at Headingley described how lower temperatures caused physical stiffness for the fast bowlers rather than serving as an excuse for the team's defeat.
Gul, who was sacked by the PCB as bowling coach mid-tour, defended his statement on social media after it was publicly ridiculed by former Australia pacer and ex-Pakistan coach Jason Gillespie.
Following an innings-and-103-run defeat in Leeds, Gul had remarked that the sudden drop in temperature left the Pakistani pacers looking "stiff" and unable to execute their lengths.
Speaking on the Fast Bowling Cartel podcast, Gillespie pulled no punches, telling Gul to "give me a spell" and mocking the statement as "ridiculous".
In a direct reply on X (formerly Twitter), Gul stood by his assessment, explaining that adapting to the abrupt, shivering conditions in Leeds was a genuine physical hurdle. He argued that looking at the full interview would show he was focusing on player acclimatisation rather than making excuses.
“I wasn’t making excuses for the weather. If you heard the full interview, I clearly mentioned that the conditions were cold and I felt our bowlers looked a bit stiff, which affected their ability to execute their bowling plans properly,” Gul wrote.
“I’m sure they’ll acclimatise to the conditions before the Lord’s Test and perform much better. And if you watched the match closely, our bowlers actually did a good job in the conditions,” he added.
The backdrop to this public feud is the Pakistan Cricket Board's (PCB) controversial mid-tour purge. Following consecutive blowout defeats at Headingley and Lord's, the board dropped seven key players and removed red-ball head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed alongside Gul.
The white-ball setup, led by Mike Hesson, has been brought in on short notice to take charge of the third and final Test, slated to begin on September 9 at Edgbaston. The revamped squad now includes a mix of domestic talent, calling up Saim Ayub, Abdullah Fazal, and five uncapped players.
Despite criticizing Gul's comments, Gillespie himself strongly slammed the PCB's management, calling the structural overhaul mid-series "absolute chaos" that severely undermines team morale.