Former head coach Gary Kirsten on his relation with Indian captain
According to former India head coach Gary Kirsten, they were the “most unlikely” partners. The two personalities had an incredible journey together.
India wanted a great mind after the 2007 WC exit
At the end of 2007, India appointed Gary Kirsten as their head coach.
Dhoni took over as India’s white-ball captain after Rahul Dravid‘s disastrous performance at the ODI World Cup in West Indies formed a legendary association with him.
Among international cricket’s greatest coach-captain alliances, the Gary Kirsten-Dhoni combination has received much praise.
Along with building a strong team, they were key in India lifting the ODI World Cup after 28 years.
In an interview on the ‘The Final Word cricket podcast’, Kirsten reflected on his relationship with the legendary keeper.
“MS and I formed the most unlikely partnership of captain-coach you will ever imagine in international game, and we end up having this incredible journey together.”
He praised Dhoni for being a leader in a tough environment.
He believes it is easy to lose focus in the midst of superstardom.
Gary Kirsten said :
“Any coach would want a group of players playing for the name on the front of the shirt and not the name on the back of the shirt.“
India is a tough place with a lot of hype around individual superstars and you often get lost in what your own personal needs are.“
“Dhoni meanwhile was standout as a leader as he was so focused on the team doing well .
“He wanted to win trophies and have great success and he was very public about that. “
“And that pulled a lot of other guys into line and quite simply Sachin (Tendulkar) started enjoying cricket as well.”
Dhoni led India to victory at the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007.
He turned around India’s fortunes after a disastrous performance in the 2007 ODI World Cup.
However, coach Gary Kirsten did not renew his contract, citing his desire to spend more time with his family.
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