Gary Kirsten relishes India challenge

[manoj_admlab]

By Steve James Last 22 Nov 2008 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/cricket/international/india/3501115/Gary-Kirsten-relishes-India-challenge-Cricket.html For he is coaching India. And that is always a perilous and pressurised task; overseeing a team that is the fanatical focal point in the lives of so many millions and is followed by a voracious, often aggressive press throng. There is quite simply no coaching job like it in cricket. Its last two occupants, John Wright and Greg Chappell, have also been outsiders. And their tenures were not exactly a bed of roses. So is Kirsten worried? Is he heck. And it is not just the Indians' current on-field brilliance that promotes such a remarkable calm. This is Kirsten's nature. He is unflappable. He is confident in his abilities. And while he goes about his work quietly and unobtrusively, India are playing some astoundingly skilful cricket. It is a powerful, if unexpected, mix. We met last Wednesday in Kanpur. I was fortunate Kirsten agreed to do so. For he is consciously keeping a low profile. But at the Landmark Hotel he was in chipper mood; relaxed, thoughtful, analytical and, as any team-mate, opponent or acquaintance will testify, eminently personable. The Indians have got themselves not only a good man, but a good cricket man. His appointment at the start of the year was still a gamble, though. His previous coaching experience was negligible. He was working as a batting consultant for the Eastern Cape Warriors and running his own academy in Cape Town when the calls came from Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri. "I never applied for the job," stresses Kirsten, "My big thing then was not to do too much travelling, but this is such an honour and a privilege." So if Kirsten has any gripe, it is the ache of separation from his family. Wife Deborah is currently at home in South Africa with their children Joshua (5) and James (18 months). And they have no permanent base in India. "It would be pointless because I'm on the road all the time," he says, "So they come over for one month on and one month off." But Kirsten will be home for Christmas. Doubtless he will rush for the airport as eagerly as the England squad when the two-match Test series concludes on Dec 23. Importantly Kirsten has a key ally here in old friend Paddy Upton. The former South Africa fitness trainer is now what is called an 'executive coach', but, just as crucially, is immersed in Indian culture. For Upton was married to his South African bride in India, in a traditional Vedic ceremony. "His contribution is vital," says Kirsten. "He helps players really understand and fine-tune their minds for performance, at the same time he works extensively at the cutting edge of the art of coaching and man-management." While Upton gets up close, Kirsten believes a coach should keep a certain distance from his players. "Because of the culture barrier, that happens naturally here," he says, "In cricket time we're together and outside we go and do our own thing. But I know how tough it is for them. They're a good side and they're good people, but they're almost a paradox in many respects. "They're so very humble, yet they've got this superstardom status. You could easily see how it could go to their heads. But it doesn't. They're good listeners and they respect your space. I can't really speak highly enough of them, and I'd have said that whether we were doing well or not. Upton's influence upon the team's fitness has also been obvious, doubtless instigated by Kirsten, a renowned fitness fanatic himself. India's fielding and running between the wickets, in the absence of the 'Fab Four' of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, has surprisingly bettered England's so far in this series. "We're trying to bring in new thinking," says Kirsten, "but we're not going to force them to do it. For instance after a game Paddy might say to those that haven't played: 'I'm running a shuttle school. If you want to come, come'." And they do. "They're physically different," explains Kirsten, "They must play the game their own way. They play with enormous flair, and they've got great hands on the ball. We've got to encourage that. "When people talk about me being a foreign coach I don't feel like a foreign coach because I've integrated my thinking, my philosophies and my style of coaching, along with Paddy's, into how the Indians go about their business. We are a very happy unit." And all the more so for Kirsten's one immutable dictum: the captain is in charge. He learned this from Duncan Fletcher, his coach from his early days at the University of Cape Town and Western Province. "The coach is not the man to sit on the parapets in cricket – it's not like soccer," says Kirsten, "Duncan taught me that. He was a great mentor to me as a player, and now he is as a coach." Kirsten's rapport with new skipper Dhoni is obvious. "He's got exceptional leadership qualities," Kirsten says, "He's a very streetwise cricketer and likes to think out of the box. That's lovely because I like to think out of the box too. He's just got that winner's mind-set: he truly believes this team will win more games than they'll lose." Lose? That doesn't look like happening too much at present.

[Rajan]

Manoj thanks for the link and for posting. a rare interview of kirsten. helps in understanding a bit about the man and also why the team and the players are having more success these days.

[Sachinism]

Thanks for that, its good to see what Kirsten is thinking and know a little more about him, because he is always out of the limelight.

[manoj_admlab]

Cheers Rajan and Sachinism.

[veer]

what a contradiction in chappell and kirsten .. the best part is kirsten keeps low profile.. but imagine chappell coaching during this time.. dhoni would have kick him out.. or shut him up..