Former fielding coach Shane McDermott returns to Afghanistan’s national cricket team as assistant coach and fielding coach ahead of next month’s five-match ODI series against Ireland.
Afghanistan | By Taieb Khatizwal
The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has appointed Shane McDermott as the new assistant coach of the Afghanistan men’s national cricket team, with additional responsibility as the team’s fielding coach.
McDermott is scheduled to join the squad on August 1, ahead of Afghanistan’s five-match One-Day International (ODI) series against Ireland.
A Level Three certified coach, McDermott previously served as Afghanistan’s fielding coach from January 2024 to July 2025 before joining the Pakistan national team in the same role for the past year.
Before his appointments in Afghanistan and Pakistan, McDermott worked as Sri Lanka men’s national team’s fielding coach between 2019 and 2021, while also serving as head coach of the Sri Lanka A team.
He also spent seven years (2012–2019) with Cricket Australia’s National Cricket Centre, holding various roles including interim assistant coach, fielding coach and performance analyst with Australia’s national and A teams.
McDermott has also been part of coaching staffs at major International Cricket Council (ICC) tournaments, including the 2022 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup.
His return is expected to strengthen Afghanistan’s coaching setup as the team prepares for the upcoming ODI series against Ireland.