The Karachi Kings have appointed former West Indies head coach Phil Simmons as their head coach for the upcoming ninth season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), replacing Johan Botha.

The Karachi Kings have appointed former West Indies all-rounder Phil Simmons as their head coach ahead of the 2024 Pakistan Super League (PSL) season. Simmons takes over from former South African all-rounder Johan Botha, who coached the Kings to second-to-last place in the 2023 PSL with three wins from ten games.

He was appointed Zimbabwe head coach back in 2004 before enjoying a long spell with Ireland. A spell with West Indies followed. He was head coach when the Caribbean team won the T20 World Cup in 2016.

The 60-year-old also served as Afghanistan's head coach before being re-appointed as West Indies coach. His second spell as West Indies coach ended after the team's exit in the first round of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia.

Simmons, who played 26 Tests and 143 ODIs from 1987 to 1999, has had an extensive coaching career, including several stints with the West Indies, the last of which ended after the team's exit in the first round of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. He is currently the head coach of the Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and the LA Knight Riders in Major League Cricket (MLC).

Simmons played an international match in Karachi during the 1987 World Cup and said in a statement that he was looking forward to returning to the city and working with Kings team director Haider Azhar.

Phil Simmons expressed his delight on being appointed as the head coach of Karachi Kings. The former West Indies cricketer, who played one international match during the 1987 World Cup in Karachi, said:

“Returning to Karachi, a city that has been close to my heart since my playing days, feels like a homecoming. I am delighted to be working with Haider Azhar and the rest of the team's think tank, drawing on this country's rich cricketing heritage.

“I am grateful to team owner Salman Iqbal, CEO Tariq Wasi and the management of Karachi Kings for this opportunity. We are committed to taking forward the rebuilding and restarting process of the Karachi Kings and establishing this franchise as a game-changing entity,” he added.

The Kings have won one title in eight PSL seasons in 2020. They hope Simmons' appointment will revive their fortunes after failing to make the tournament's playoffs in both 2022 and 2023.

Simmons' first task will be assembling the Kings' roster during Wednesday's player draft. The Kings currently have eight players on their roster: Shan Masood (captain), James Vince, Hasan Ali, Shoaib Malik, Tabraiz Shamsi, Mir Hamza, Muhammad Akhlaq and Muhammad Irfan Khan.

The 2024 PSL season is scheduled to run from February 13 to March 18.