Inzamam-ul Haq has supported the appointment of Australian Jeff Lawson as Pakistan cricket team coach, saying the country has produced some great players but they lack in man-management skills.
"Javed Miandad is one of the best teachers of the game and I have learnt a lot about the game and batting from him. But to be a successful coach you must also be a good manager and understand the psyche of every player differently and treat them accordingly," Inzamam said in an interview on Tuesday.
The Pakistan Cricket Board on Monday named Lawson as the team's new coach, preferring him over his compatriots Dav Whatmore and Richard Done.
The former Australian pacer will be in Pakistan on August 15 to take up his two-year coaching assignment. He is the third foreigner to coach the team after Richard Pybus and Bob Woolmer.
Inzamam, who retired from one-day internationals and relinquished captaincy during the World Cup after Pakistan's shock defeat to Ireland in March, felt Lawson is a good choice.
"Foreign coaches generally have good man-management skills and we had good experience of this with the late Bob Woolmer.
"I don't know Lawson, but the players have spoken well of him and they think he has a different but more aggressive style of coaching, which suits the way we play our cricket," he said.
Inzamam also said he is not concerned about not being given a new central contract or even a retainer, which was announced by the PCB on Monday.
"The thing is I want to play Test cricket, because I feel I still have cricket left in me. But my philosophy is simple: if God and fate has ordained me to play Test cricket no one can stop me from doing that. If it is no longer in my fate, no matter what happens, I will not play again," he said.
Captain Shoaib Malik also backed Lawson's appointment, saying the players were impressed with his ideas on the game.
"We liked his positive approach and the stress on getting on with the game. He also appeared to be a good manager of players," he said.
But Malik denied that the players had spoken ill of Dav Whatmore, saying they gave a positive opinion on all three candidates.
"The final decision was with the board and it had nothing to do with players," he said.
He added that it was a good idea to have a bowler as coach for the first time.
"I want to see how the players react to working with a bowler coach. Bowling has been our strength and if Lawson can improve their performances it will mean success for us."
