FORMER Suffolk cricketer Richard Pybus has quit his job as Bangladesh coach after less than five months in the role.

The 48-year-old oversaw the Tigers’ preparation for the World Twenty20 and the tournament itself, which saw them exit at the first group stage.

Pybus, who made his Minor Counties debut for Suffolk in 1986 and played 18 matches, had an option to remain until the 2015 World Cup. However, he felt the terms of his contract and the interference from administration had made his position untenable.

The main reason for his decision was the difference between the terms he agreed with the Bangladesh Cricket Board and the terms that were written in his contract.

Pybus, who played club cricket for both Sudbury and Halstead in the Two Counties Championship and went on to become a successful coach in South Africa as well as coaching the Pakistan national side, said the BCB wanted him to spend 320 days a year with the Bangladesh team, a commitment he did not wish to make because of family reasons.

He told ESPNcricinfo: “The board approached me earlier this year on three occasions to become head coach. I turned them down twice, as I couldn’t commit to the amount of time they wanted me to be with the team and in Bangladesh, which was 320 days a year.

“I explained that I had family responsibilities that stop me from being away for this amount of time. The third time they approached me, I explained again, in detail, what the issues were.

“I said I could prepare the team in camps, tour with them and be there for all series, but I needed to get home between tours for my family. If they were happy with that, then I could do the job for them. That was when they agreed that I would be able to go home between tours. Their agreement was never made explicit in the contract they presented to me in Dhaka so I refused to sign it. That is the heart of the matter.”

Pybus revealed the lack of support he received from the board when he wanted to make certain changes and supplement his coaching with additional information was another reason behind his decision to quit.

“I asked for the mandate of authority and responsibility to run the national side without interference from board directors and was given that assurance by board president [Mustafa] Kamal. In reality that was never the case,” he added. “My position was undermined consistently by interference from the board.

“I couldn’t even get the board to sign off on providing healthy sandwiches for the players after training. Players were going down with food poisoning during camps, so I wanted to offer them something better than a fried egg sandwich. I was told I couldn’t, because that was all the budget could afford.”