Team was prioritised over individual sucess in Indian cricket, attests Gary Kirsten

Former South Africa Test cricketer Gary Kirsten had joined as head coach of Team India in early 2008 and enjoyed a compact yet successful stint with the team that became World Champions in 2011. According to the 52-year-old, Team India had a bunch of successful legendary cricketers in the side, including the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni, when Kirsten joined and yet managing them wasn’t a challenge to him. The whole munch was, in fact, dedicated to building a great team environment and focused on the team’s success instead. 

“We moved away from focusing on individual success and more around what we wanted to achieve as a team. This was a fundamental shift and forced us to look at how we behaved and operated as a group of people, every day. In short, we focused on anything that could make the team environment a great place to be, with lots of fun and enjoyment to go with it,” Kirsten told Sportstar. 

After a shameful exit from the 2007 World Cup, India built themselves into a team that is meant to achieve bigger under captain MS Dhoni. According to Kirsten, there was a lot of “external pressure” as India were hosts of the 2011 World Cup, however, amongst the team it was all calm. The former coach added it was Dhoni’s ‘inspirational’ captaincy that guided the team to a better environment and, hence, the historic moment of success. 

“There was plenty of external pressure but the internal dynamics of the team environment were calm and secure. We never panicked, regardless of how well or badly we played. The players believed in each other and we always knew someone would deliver for the team. A hugely talented group of cricketers with an inspirational captain (MS Dhoni), looking for a stable, secure and safe environment," Kirsten added.