Former Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur believes Pakistan cricket needs greater stability and consistency to make the most of its talent.
Arthur, who guided Pakistan to the ICC Champions Trophy title in 2017, said that constant changes in leadership, management and the domestic structure have made it difficult to build a settled environment.
“When I was coach, I tried to get that consistency a lot closer. I tried to get our good and bad a lot closer. And we tried to create some security because once we had security within our team and players knew that they had the backing and they were going to play for an extended period, you get good results and consistency,” Arthur said during a recent interview.
He argued that frequent changes can affect players and prevent a team from developing the stability needed for consistent performances.
“Once you chop and change all the time […] it’s just never, never stable,” he said.
Arthur said he believed Pakistan had enough talent to achieve far better results if the system provided players with a stable environment.
“You create a good environment that’s stable and you get consistency. So, I look and I’m extremely frustrated because I think I know what it would take to just harness all that potential. And you harness that potential. It’s so powerful, and Pakistan would and should be getting incredible results,” he added.
Arthur has one of the most extensive coaching careers in international cricket. He served as South Africa’s head coach from 2005 to 2010 and helped the Proteas reach the top of the ICC Test rankings.
He later became Australia’s head coach from 2011 to 2013, making him Australia’s first overseas-born head coach.
Pakistan appointed Arthur as head coach in 2016. During his tenure from 2016 to 2019, Pakistan reached the number 1 position in the ICC Test and T20I rankings and won the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, defeating India in the final.
After leaving Pakistan, Arthur became Sri Lanka’s head coach in 2019 and remained in the role until 2021. He then joined Derbyshire as Head of Cricket, a position he has continued to hold.
In February 2026, Derbyshire announced that Arthur had signed a new contract keeping him at the club until the end of the 2028 season.
Arthur also returned to Pakistan cricket in 2023 as Director of the Pakistan men’s cricket team. He left the role in January 2024 after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) changed his portfolio and assigned him duties at the National Cricket Academy.
