Kirsten played a big role in India's World Cup 2011 win after a distressful World Cup 2007.
India's World Cup 2011 winning coach Gary Kirsten, who took over the role in 2008, was the perfect fit for the position. He found it easy to gel up with the players, unlike Greg Chappell.
Kirsten talked about his role in bringing Sachin's career back on track. Tendulkar wasn't in good touch with Chappell as a coach. He was asked to bat out of his position which reflected on his stats.
“You just asked him [Sachin], didn’t you, when you arrived, you just asked Sachin, ‘What would you want me to do? And he said, ‘Be my friend?”, host Neil Manthorp asked Kirsten on TalkSports’ Following On podcast.
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Kirsten responded to the question and said, “Yeah, as simple as that. I ended up having a great coaching journey with him and that, for me, is where the essence of coaching is now, certainly modern coaching. You’re actually facilitating people’s ability to be the best version of themselves."
The former South African cricketer also revealed Sachin was ready to give up the game.
“If I think of Sachin at that time, where he was when I arrived in India … he wanted to give up the game. According to him, he was batting out of position, he wasn’t enjoying his cricket at all. Three years later, he scores 18 international hundreds in three years, goes back to batting where he wants to bat, and we win the World Cup,” added Kirsten.
Gary made sure the environment in the dressing room remains positive so it doesn't affect them on the field.
“So, for me, all I did was facilitate an environment for him to thrive. I didn’t tell him anything. He knew the game, but what he did need was an environment – not only him, all of them – an environment set up where they could be the best version of themselves,” Kirsten concluded.