Aftab Habib quits as National Coach

Aftab Habib has quit as Hong Kong's National Coach.

In a brief statement issued today, HKCA General Manager, Danny Lai said "We are sorry to announce that the Hong Kong National Coach, Aftab Habib, has resigned with immediate effect. Aftab has brought a lot of successes to Hong Kong cricket and he will be missed by all of us in Hong Kong.

The HKCA wish him all the best in the future."

During Habib's tenure as National Coach, Hong Kong's cricket teams enjoyed considerable success. The senior men's team won the ACC Trophy Elite 2008 and narrowly missed out on reaching the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifying tournament; the Under-19 team won the ACC Under-19 Elite Cup 2009 and qualified for the 2010 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup; and the Hong Kong's Women's Cricket team won the inaugural ACC Women's Twenty20 Championships.

The HKCA will shortly be calling for nominations for suitable candidates to temporarily fill the positions vacated by Aftab Habib's departure.

Hong Kong faces two major international tournaments in the coming months. The Hong Kong men's senior team will play at the ACC Twenty20 Cup in the UAE during 22-30 November 2009 while the Hong Kong Under-19 team will participate in the 2010 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup in New Zealand from 16-30 January 2010.