Afghan coach Phil Simmons to quit after World Cup 2019

Afghan coach Phil Simmons has confirmed that he is all set to retire from his position as coach after the end of the ICC men's World Cup 2019

Former West Indies all-rounder Phil Simmons has confirmed that he is all set to retire from his position as Afghanistan coach after the end of the ICC men's World Cup as his contract with Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) runs until the end of the 50-over mega event. Afghanistan will open their World Cup campaign against five-time champions Australia on June 1. "I have thought about it and I have actually given the ACB my notice that I will not be renewing my contract. I will move on to something different once my contract expires on July 15," Simmons told ESPNcricinfo. "I signed up originally for 18 months and I think I have done a lot in this period. It is time for me to move on to something else now. To want to get to the World Cup - that was ACB's goal at the time they appointed me," Simmons said. "My goal is always to leave things better than when I joined: the way we practice, the way we think about the game, the way we assess other teams. I've tried to help the players in all those areas," added the 56-year-old, under whom Afghanistan won the World Cup Qualifier last March. Last month, Afghanistan cricket's two great players and biggest voices, Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi had strongly raised their voices to criticize Afghanistan cricket board after Asghar Afghan, who has been captain of Afghanistan since April 2015, was removed as Afghanistan’s captain of all three formats. The cricket board named Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan and Rahmat Shah as captains for the ODIs, T20Is and Tests respectively. "No, I was not aware of it. I was not given any reasons. It was the decision of the Afghanistan Cricket Board and the selectors," Simmons said. "How can I take it? I can't change it. So I have to just get on with what I have to do and make sure the squad is preparing in the same way I wanted them to prepare barring the (captaincy) change."