Latest Sports Updates: April 2011

An emotional India coach Gary Kirsten said bidding adieu to the team he has nurtured is one of the hardest goodbyes he has ever had to say.

Speaking to reporters on what can easily be looked as his last address to the media and people as India Coach, Gary Kirsten appreciated the sentiments of Indian players, who want him to stay as the India coach, but politely refused to honour the wish.

Hardest Goodbye ever

"It has been one of the hardest good byes I have had to say," Kirsten told reporters in his farewell press conference after serving out a successful term during which the Indian team reached the pinnacle of Test rankings besides lifting its first World Cup title in 28 years, last week.

"It has been an amazing achievement to be a part of this special group of cricketers," he said.

Kirsten came into the job with no coaching experience but turned out to be the most successful for India and the South African said having no prior experience probably worked to his advantage.

"I think it was interesting to come into this job without any coaching experience. I used the reference of being a player to work with the team. I tried building trust in the environment. Me and Paddy (Upton) tried to make sure that they knew that we had come to India to make it the best team in the world," he said.

Kirsten, who declined an offer to extend his tenure, said he has no plans to take up any other coaching assignment as of now and wants to spend time with his family.

"I am going home to spend some time with my family. But I have to consider my future at some time. I have been fortunate to have been offered some jobs but I want to spend time with my family right now," he said.

Indian cricket in pink of health

The Indian team performed consistently well under his guidance and Kirsten said there is hardly any area to improve upon from here except for fielding, which has also bettered in the past few months.

"They are the number one Test team in the world and won the World Cup so there is nothing much to improve. We have been working really hard on fielding and I was quite amazed at the way we fielded in the last three games of the World Cup," he said referring to the improved standards of fielding in the Indian team's knockout stage campaign.

The 43-year-old Kirsten said it would be quite a job for the next India coach as the task at hand is to sustain the consistency that the team has achieved in the past couple of years.

"Indian cricket is in a healthy position right now. Seam bowling is a slight concern but it has always been. But Indian cricket is going to be in a healthy state for a long time.

"It is going to be tough for the new coach in terms of the standards that have been set. But I don't see why the team should not continue doing well. The foundation has been set. The new coach should bring in fresh ideas," he said.

"I certainly wouldn't want the new guy to try and emulate what has been done in the past three years. Consistency for this team is now going be very important. I think the foundation is well set," he explained.

Speaking about individual players in the team, Kirsten lavished praise on the young brigade.

"Virat Kohli is ready for Test cricket. He is a bright young star. He has taken the responsibility of playing for India in big games really well. I think it's important to have competitiveness to be in the Indian team. You cannot be in the team with average performances.

"I have really enjoyed working with Suresh Raina. He has been an exceptional players. I have been impressed with Cheteshwar Pujara who can be a star of the future in Test matches. Pragyan Ojha has done well and he just needs to keep learning what he has to do. It is important to find one or two quality seamers.

"I was impressed with Munaf Patel. He performed well in the World Cup. Ashish Nehra also did well in the World Cup. Zaheer Khan has been number one for a long time but guys these need support," Kirsten said.

Zaheer best medium pacer

Kirsten said Zaheer, in fact, is the best medium pacer in the world right now.

"Zaheer is the best 135kmph bowler in the world right now. He performs well under pressure. I think he is an unbelievable bowler to left-handers," he said.

Another player who got appreciation from the outgoing coach was flamboyant batsman Yuvraj Singh, who bagged the Man of the Tournament award at the World Cup for his fantastic performance with both the bat and ball.

"He was well-prepared and he had worked hard on his bowling. For Yuvi to end up being man of the tournament, I am extremely proud of him," he said.

On memorable journey

Looking back at the memorable ICC Cricket World Cup, Kirsten he was glad that every match that the team played in the group stage turned out to be close one as it prepared the side for the knockout stage.

"It was an interesting World Cup. We never had it easy.

The first one against Bangladesh was perhaps the easiest. In the last three games of the knockout stage, there were no big individual contributions. It was a team effort. I was excited about the way we played," he said.

Road ahead

Kirsten said he would keep coming back to India and might even consider coaching an IPL team in future.

"I would definitely consider coming to India. IPL is certainly an avenue from a coaching point of view. But I don't know what I am going to be doing," he said.

It's been humbling to be asked to stay back. This has been a massive privilege for me but I did make a commitment to my family that it's gonna be a three-year journey," Kirsten said.

"It's a lot of sacrifice to be away from home for long time. I have two sons - seven and four - and they need to see little bit of dad. It's not easy," he told a news channel.

Kirsten had decided to quit from his position as India coach before the World Cup had begun and has played a key role in transforming the Indian team into world beaters.

Asked whether he found handling temperamental pacer S Sreesanth difficult given that even skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni seems to have given up no him, Kirsten broke into a laughter.

"Paddy spent a lot of time with Sreesanth. He is highly skilled. Sree needs to work on his consistency. He played seven Test matches in a row for us and he was the key. So I think he needs to deliver those performances consistently. It would be wasted potential if a Sreesanth didn't go to the next level in his cricket," he said.

Kirsten thanked the Indian fans for giving him the same respect that he got from the players he coached.

"It's been a tremendous experience. I have been honoured by the way Indians have embraced me. It's been incredible to see how much the Indian people love this game. To see the support the boys get from the Indian fans is fantastic. It's a beautiful country. I have made lots of friends here. So I will keep coming back," he said.

On captain Dhoni

Heaping praises on India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the outgoing national team coach Gary Kirsten said that the skipper not only leads by example and puts in maximum effort on the field but also feels it the most when the team loses.

"Dhoni is a leader by example. I have never seen a player give as much effort to every game. He leads by example. He is the 100 per cent man. I've never seen him lose his temper. He loves taking responsibility and when the team loses, no one feels it more than him," said Kirsten.

"He is a great leader. He is the captain for next few years, no doubt," he added.

Kirsten, who took up the coaching job with the Indian cricket with no prior experience, said he looked at creating an environment where the team was happy and for that he relied heavily on batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar.

"There is man-management which is the most important. You have to give options to the cricketer to cross the ropes and perform his best. It's about understanding individuals, working with what they have got and how they can improve without changing their technique," said Kirsten.

"I wanted to create an environment where the team was happy and felt like team. Sachin for me was the leader in this way," he added.

The South African also said it would be great if Tendulkar could continue to play till 2015 World Cup but admitted that he was getting old and must now become selective in his approach.

"In 2015, he would be 42...I think that would be great. He doesn't want to retire because he is enjoying the game. I am proud of him. But he is getting old and he would have to pick and choose his games," said Kirsten.

Sad for South African Team

Asked whether he ever felt emotionally confused when the opposition team was his own country South Africa, Kirsten said quipped he was happy to see the back of Graeme Smith's men from the World Cup as India coach but did feel bad for his nation.

"It's always been a mix of emotions. South Africa is my country, I felt sad for them that they didn't do well but then it was good for us that they were knocked out. We have played South Africa many times but my heart was 100 per cent with the Indian team," he said.

Kirsten also urged his country's media to stop calling the Proteas chokers.

"South Africa is a great team but I think everyone seems to focus on the World Cup and the knockout stages. In a tournament like this, you need to have huge amount of experience in the middle order which I think they were probably a little short of.

"It worries me when the South African media puts up the chokers' tag. I can understand the opposition media doing it but your media shouldn't. I do feel sad for them. Graeme Smith said 'it's not easy, we are trying' and it's true, it's not easy," he said.

Team selection in World Cup final led to widespread criticism, say Sri Lankan Cricket insiders.

In a shocking decision, Kumar Sangakkara has quit as Sri Lankan skipper. The decision wasn’t unexpected, if Sri Lankan Cricket insiders are to be believed.

According to a Sri Lankan Board media release on Tuesday, Sangakkara has stepped down as Lanka’s ODI and T20 captain. He wants to quit as skipper of the Test squad too, but will continue if required. Interestingly, Sangakkara was named as the skipper of IPL team Deccan Chargers on Monday.

Sangakkara’s departure wasn’t unexpected since he faced immense criticism after Sri Lanka were humbled by India in the ICC Cricket World Cup final in Mumbai on April 2. SLC sources say Sangakkara’s decision to make four changes in the playing XI caused a storm after India won by six wickets.

The Sri Lanka captain, who was worshipped by the national media for playing a stellar role in his team’s march into the World Cup final, lost sympathy overnight after India thrashed the 1996 world champions at the Wankhede Stadium.

“He had no business to make four changes in a squad that won the quarterfinal (against England) and the semifinal (against New Zealand) comprehensively,” said the Board source, who wished not to be quoted.

He added: “Playing Suraj Randiv was the biggest mistake. Someone who was not even in the squad was playing a final against the might of an Indian batting line-up. It was a crazy decision.”

In a media statement released by the Sri Lankan Board, Sangakkara said: “I would like to announce that after careful consideration I have concluded that it is in the best long-term interests of the team that I step down now as national captain so that a new leader can be properly groomed for the 2015 World Cup in Australia.

“This was a decision I made prior to the 2011 World Cup. I will be 37 by the next World Cup and I cannot therefore be sure of my place in the team. It is better that Sri Lanka is led now by a player who will be at the peak of their career during that tournament.

“It has been a true honour and a great privilege to serve my country as captain during the past two years and, although bitterly disappointed that we could not win the final, I am very proud of the performances of the team.”

Known to take pragmatic decisions, Sangakkara’s move to make four changes clearly backfired. While Thisara Perera replaced the injured Angelo Mathews, Randiv substituted left-arm spinner Rangana Herath, a bowling allrounder, who had done well in the World Cup.

“Randiv was a bad move and apparently Sanga took this decision unilaterally. All is fine if you are winning, but this one was the World Cup final. It was too costly an error,” the SLC source said.

Sangakkara has offered to lead the side against England and Australia, incase the SLC failed to find a successor. The only man capable of leading the side is Sangakkara’s best friend and former captain, Mahela Jayawardene. But will Mahela do the job? Or it is just a passing storm?