Former South African cricketer Ashwell Prince has stepped down as Bangladesh men’s national cricket team batting coach ahead of the series against Afghanistan.
"Yes, Prince has stepped down," Bangladesh Cricket Board’s cricket operations chairman Jalal Yunus said, according to bdnews24.com.
“He has cited family reasons for his decision," Jalal Yunus said.
Prince was appointed as a batting consultant for the tour of Zimbabwe in June last year. The BCB later extended his contract until the end of the 2022 T20 World Cup.
The sudden departure of Prince could be linked to the recent appointment of former coach Jamie Siddons as batting consultant. The BCB had earlier said that the roles of Prince and Siddons will be discussed after Prince returned from vacation in South Africa.
"It’s surprising of course. We said that we would fix his role once he returned. He was a part of our main team. There was no decision on not keeping him in the team. We'd have held discussions after he returned. But he had already made up his mind," Yunus said.
Rumours were swirling about the possible departure of Russell Domingo, the head coach of the men’s national team. However, Yunus said the board was in constant contact with Domingo and that he would return from vacation in time for the Afghanistan series.
The Afghan cricketers are scheduled to arrive in Bangladesh on Saturday to play three ODIs and two T20Is. The first match of the ODI series will take place on Feb 23.
The T20 series will begin after the conclusion of the ODI series.