The newly appointed chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board, Ijaz Butt has made it public that the contract of Geoff Lawson as a coach of the Pakistan cricket team would not be renewed. However, Lawson has not been communicated regarding this decision on a personal level. Butt was appointed almost two weeks back and since then he has met the Pakistan skipper Shoaib Malik as well as Saleem Jaffar who is the temporary chief selector, but has not met Lawson in person. 
Lawson’s remarks
Lawson seemed unwilling to comment regarding this issue. He told Cricinfo that “I have not had a meeting with or indeed heard a single word from the Chairman since he was appointed. At this stage it is business as usual for all the coaching staff as we prepare for the Pentangular Cup, the West Indies ODI series in Abu Dhabi and give players tasks to perform during the Pentangular Cup as we also begin preparation for the India Test series in January.”
Lawson’s contract
Butt has made it clear that Lawson would stop work as coach after April 2009. However, the original contract which has been signed by Lawson extends up to August 2009. Thus, it can be concluded that Lawson would be at the summit during the India series in January 2009, the Twenty20 World Championships as well as the Sri Lankan tour scheduled in next summer. If in any of these competitions, the Pakistan squad displays favorable results then some people would raise questions as to why the decision to discontinue Lawson was taken at an early stage.