ISLAMABAD, May 28: Pakistan said on Monday it has received 13 applications from as far afield as England and Australia for the job of national cricket coach following the death of Bob Woolmer.

But the names of the candidates for one of the toughest jobs in the sport will remain secret until a final decision is made, hopefully by July 1, the Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Dr Nasim Ashraf said.

“We have received 13 applications so far. Unfortunately I cannot tell you their names because these are confidential and we are negotiating with them,” Dr Nasim told reporters in Islamabad.

“The 13 include Pakistani as well as foreign coaches. There are important people among the foreign coaches from England, as well as Australia,” he said.

Dr Nasim said the PCB had no particular preference about where the new coach hailed from – they merely needed the right man for the job.

“More important than whether it is a foreign coach or a domestic coach, it is the criteria of a coach that we are looking for, what skills he should have, what duties he has,” he said.

“We need a highly educated, young, skilled coach who should be very much computer literate.”

The new coach also needed “fresh ideas about modern cricket. Cricket has significantly changed during the last 10 years,” Dr Nasim said.

Former England international Woolmer, 58, was found dead in his hotel room in Jamaica the morning after Pakistan crashed out of the World Cup tournament.

Police said in March they believed he was murdered.

No suspects have been arrested over Woolmer's death, which recent reports suggest may have been from natural causes.

The PCB advertised the position worldwide in late April.

The ad said the appointment would be for an initial period of two years starting from June 2007 and that terms and conditions were negotiable. It set a deadline of May 15 for applications.

The PCB said on May 10 that it was interested in hiring outgoing Bangladesh coach Dav Whatmore, although arch rivals India were also in the hunt for the former Australia Test player.

Local media have said that former India coach John Wright, a New Zealander, and Tim Boon, coach of English county side Leicestershire, are among the favourites.

“We are trying our best to select a coach before July 1. But I want to tell you that we will not be doing this in any haste,” Dr Nasim added.

“We will hire the best available coach, who should prove the best for Pakistani cricket.”

—AFP