I want to show faith in the players: Pakistan cricket coach Jason Gillespie

In advance of a busy Test cricket calendar, Gillespie opens up on the team’s poor results, showing trust in the captain and making Pakistan a competitive Test team.

Pakistan’s men’s cricket team has been through a tumultuous year, failing miserably at both the 50-over World Cup in November and the T20 World Cup in June. In the Test format, they lost a series away in Australia and then, most recently, their first series against Bangladesh at home.

Babar Azam, their all-format star batter, has gone through a lean patch and has handed back the limited overs team’s captaincy for the second time in 11 months. Pakistan’s pace bowlers, their strongest asset historically, have failed to deliver at crucial moments and their Test captain, Shan Masood, has failed to score a century in his last 14 innings.

Enter, Jason Gillespie. The former Australian fast bowler turned cricket coach has taken over as the Test team’s head coach and was in charge when Pakistan lost the series against Bangladesh.

Gillespie finds himself in tough circumstances, especially as eighth-ranked Pakistan find themselves in a busy period of Test cricket and host third-ranked England in a three-match Test series from Monday.

In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera’s Kevin Hand, Gillespie reveals his plans for the Pakistan side.

Al Jazeera: You’ve taken over the side at a busy time but also at one of their worst periods in recent years. How do you plan to stop a further slide?

Jason Gillespie: When I took this role on I knew it was [going to be] a challenge, but I went into it relishing the opportunity. It’s not going to be easy but I’m confident in the players and their abilities. I’m confident that myself, my coaching staff and support staff can help