Gary Kirsten will coach Delhi Daredevils over the next three years.
“India’s a fascinating cricket destination, and it’s a privilege to be back,” the former South African top order batsman said of his appointment. The low-key but high-performance oriented architect of India’s climb to the top of Test rankings and the triumph in the 2011 World Cup shared his thoughts on his new role with the media here on Tuesday.
On whether he could pull off with the DD what he did with the Indian team: (laughs) We’ll see at the end of the season.
On loyalty to the franchise in the IPL: In professional sports, it’s not difficult to keep an individual. In the time he’s with you, he’s got to get the best experience he’s ever had.
The IPL creates an emotional contract between a player and a city/franchise.
On scandal-hit IPL: My responsibilities will rest within my franchise. My job is to get the best out of the players. There is a greater responsibility to the product, which is the IPL and any stakeholder in it must treasure the product.
It’s sad when these things unfold. A lot of money involved is going to influence people.
On changes to the IPL structure: They are looking for the best practices. We’re into IPL-7. What I hear is that they are trying to make it as fair a system as possible.
There’s been a lot of learning along the way. What I’ve heard is that it’ll be a more even playing field where everyone gets a fair chance.
On DD’s poor showing last season: I don’t know the reasons. That’s what we tried to unpack over the past two days. One could argue it was a little unfortunate for them. There needs to be a plan A, B and C (when it comes to team composition).
On seeing Virender Sehwag in his prime and in decline: It’s my responsibility to see what he needs and get the best out of him. Every great player is not great without reason.
