Watson wants to honour his current coaching and commentary commitments.
According to the report, Watson wants to honour his current coaching and commentary commitments rather than leaving them at a short notice.
Among Watson’s commitments are the Indian Premier League (IPL) commentary stint, head coach role in Major League Cricket with San Francisco Unicorns, along with coaching Quetta Gladiators. Moreover, he has a young family and it may have also played a role in his decision.
Had Watson accepted PCB’s offer, he would have assumed charge with immediate effect ahead of Pakistan's next limited-overs series against New Zealand at home in April.
Watson's decision to opt out of the race means Pakistan remain without a head coach ahead of the five-T20I series against New Zealand, slated to get underway on April 18 in Rawalpindi.
Pakistan are also schedule to tour England for a four-match T20I series in May ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024 in June.
Earlier, multiple reports in the Pakistan media claimed that Shane Watson was being offered a lucrative amount of US$2 million a year. However, ESPNcricinfo reported that the actual figure was closer to half that number. PCB's offer reportedly played no role in Watson's decision to withdraw.
In January this year, Mickey Arthur, Grant Bradburn, and Andrew Puttick resigned from their respective positions at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore after being demoted by the Pakistan Cricket Board due to the team’s poor performance in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.
Notably, Arthur served as the director of Pakistan cricket while Grant Bradburn was the head coach and Andrew Puttick was the batting coach before their demotions to the NCA by the PCB.
After the World Cup in India last year, Pakistan travelled to Australia and New Zealand for a Test and T20I series respectively. In both tours, Mohammad Hafeez performed the dual role of team director and head coach. The PCB parted ways with Hafeez last month after the team failed to produce positive results in Australia and New Zealand.
(With ESPNcricinfo Inputs)