Gary Kirsten talked about the difference in coaching an international team and sides in T20 leagues.
While one, he says, requires an extensive amount of travelling and building a level of trust with players for a long period of time, the other forces him to strive for excellence in a very short window, with the chances of failing only increased in a format like T20.
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“A national team requires extensive travel because of all the touring which makes it difficult for families. A franchise team coaching job is tough in terms of building a culture and a ‘way of doing things’ in an eight-week tournament, with high expectation on short term results," Kirsten told Daily Sun.
Yet, there are certain similarities in coaching a national side and doing the same job in a franchise-based environment.
"Coaches require a variety of skill sets which allow them to have oversight in every segment of running a professional cricket team," said Kirsten.
"This includes season and tournament preparation, man-management, building a team culture, managing relationships, recruitment, contracting, strategy, recruitment and management of support staff, practice and training facilities, media commitments, team logistics, team feedback loops and debriefs, consultants and all other services linked to a high-performance professional sports team."
For Kirsten, 52, who played 101 Tests and 185 ODIs for South Africa, man-management is an important part of his job, irrespective of which kind of team he is involved with.
"Coaches need to be able to successfully manage all different types of personalities so that each player has an opportunity to thrive," he said. "The coach is also trying to set a high performing team environment and has a responsibility for the success of the team and not only individuals."
"Every new coach needs support from players who can drive the new culture or way of doing things. This can take time and to win these players over, requires trust, transparency and good connections. We expect too much from coaches in a short time."
Advancement in technology is also of good help to modern-day coaches. "It is becoming more important to decode, especially in T20 cricket," said Kirsten. "Every team is looking for a competitive advantage and the more advanced and relevant the data points, the more the coaches will embrace them."
Kirsten also talked about the role of Paddy Upton while they were both with the Indian team. Upton, the then mental health and conditioning coach, joined the side in 2008, and together with Kirsten, helped the MS Dhoni-led unit reach the No.1 Test ranking, apart from the achieving the World Cup glory.
"Paddy was instrumental in this role in my three years with the Indian team," said Kirsten. "On hindsight, I believe sometimes even the right-hand man can come up with better plans. A strong trusting relationship where a head coach can be challenged and receive frequent meaningful feedback is vital for every team."
(Inputs from Daily Sun)