MS Dhoni Never Dwelled On His Own Performance, Focus Was Always On How Team Could Do Well: Gary Kirsten
Published - 18 Apr 2022, 04:39 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 01:07 AM
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Former India mentor Gary Kirsten in a recent interview with The Indian Express on the Idea Exchange program doffed his cap to the master MS Dhoni, referring to him as “the Ultimate team player”.
Dhoni, who is the first and only to have won all the ICC tournaments, is prestigious as an extraordinary pioneer among his mates. His stretch along with Gary Kirsten yielded India the 2011 World Cup. Notwithstanding, he is seldom found in the frame when the squad is being presented the cups.
MS Dhoni Always Focused On How The Team Could Do Well: Gary Kirsten
Reading into this, Kirsten said, “I think he’s just an ultimate team player. He is a great leader, his interest is in the performance of the team.”
“As a captain, his mindset was always to look at the team first and see the way the team could be thriving. He never dwelled on his own performances. His focus was always on how the team could do well,” said the 54-year-old former South African opener.
Gary Kirsten Talks About His Coaching Theory
The World Cup-winning mentor additionally proceeded to talk about his coaching theory and said, “I think every environment requires something different. So it’s really about understanding the environment you are working in. For example, working with a lot of senior players requires a different leadership as compared to when you are with a group of junior, inexperienced players.
“So, it’s really understanding that environment. Your style of leadership will be based on what the requirements are. Young players need a bit more guidance and direction. Senior players just need an environment where they feel they can make a contribution. I think a lot of it just depends on the environment that you are working in as a coach.
Nothing But Impressed So far: Gary Kirsten On Hardik Pandya’s Journey As A Captain
Kirsten who is right now working in the IPL with Gujarat Titans likewise shed light on his discussion with the revived Hardik Pandya, who is captaining the new franchise.
“We’ve had a number of conversations, but, you know, the coaching conversations are mostly not about me giving him directions. It is more about me helping him understand what he wants to achieve with his batting. He has got some good clarity in that space. He realised that he’s going to play a very different role in this team as a batsman, compared to what he has done in his previous franchise.
“He has absolutely thrived in that new role. I mean, he’s class. He’s a fantastic batsman, he can play in a lot of different ways. He’s not one dimensional in his ball striking. He can rotate strike and he can get the ball to the boundary. Those kinds of batsmen are very dangerous. They can do different things on a field.
I think he’s played with great maturity and he has handled the pressure situations really well when he walked into bat with two down quickly. So, I have been nothing but impressed with that journey,” Kirsten added.
Gujrat Titans, quite surprisingly, have been the team of the tournament so far. Out of 6 games played, they have managed to win 5 of them and are sitting comfortably at the top of the table with 10 points. Hardik Pandya led side will play their next game against KKR on 23rd April.
