Mickey Arthur slams Misbah ul Haq for ‘not following through’

Former Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur says he feels betrayed in the manner his departure was handled by the Pakistan Cricket Board.

In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, the 51-year-old South African said,” "I guess the only disappointment I have out of the whole lot is that there were some people I really trusted who ultimately didn't follow through."

Arthur was replaced by former captain Misbah-ul-Haq who was handed the dual role of head coach and chief selector. Waqar Younis another member of the cricket committee was made the bowling coach. 

“I'm not talking about the hierarchy, I'm talking about people on the cricket committee that I did trust who sort of said one thing and ultimately did another. So that was the disappointing aspect of it," he added.

Arthur further said, "I said Misbah would be outstanding because he was a godfather of Pakistan cricket and he is — Misbah is an outstanding individual make no mistake about that.”

"And I sort of said, I thought Wasim Akram would be good to get on the committee because I think Wasim just understands the international game so well. He carries a huge stature in international cricket,” he added.

"Those were guys I endorsed and guys I really enjoyed. As I say, they had a job to do and they decided it was in the best interests of Pakistan cricket to go with a fresh set of eyes. And it just happened to be that Misbah was on the committee that didn't renew our contracts and becomes this heir-apparent.

"Ultimately Misbah will do a good job, Misbah is a good guy and Pakistan cricket made their decision. I was disappointed because I loved every second of that job," Arthur added.

Last month the PCB announced it had decided not to renew Arthur’s contract after Pakistan failed to reach the knockout phase of the World Cup.