IPL: Royal Challengers Bangalore Appoint Gary Kirsten as Head Coach

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) franchise has announced former South African opener and Team India coach Gary Kirsten as their head coach and mentor for the 12^th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

It was under his coaching that India lifted the ICC World Cup for the second time in 2011. He will be succeeding former New Zealand spinner Daniel Vettori. The left-arm spinner was associated with the franchise for the last eight editions of the coveted tournament.

Kirsten joined as a batting consultant for Bangalore in 2018. For yet another season, Bangalore failed to qualify for the playoffs. They gave themselves a fair chance after coming back strongly in the later games.

However, they lost the final game to Rajasthan Royals (RR) which led to their ouster from the tournament.

Gary Kirsten says its an honour to be in charge of RCB 

Kirsten will bring a wealth of experience as he has played close to 700 matches spread over One-day Internationals, Tests and first-class matches. He has also scored more than 40,000 runs in all forms of the game.

The batting star Kirsten was overjoyed after the appointment. Kirsten stated that it was an honour for him to be in charge of the Bangalore franchise. He earlier served as a batting consultant for the Delhi Daredevils (DD) in 2017.

“I had the privilege of coaching with the RCB team last season under head coach Vettori. And  (I) thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I look forward to continuing the journey with RCB and doing my best to help the franchise reach its potential,” Kristen said.

 

“Want to thank the team management for considering me in a leadership position with the franchise and I look forward to a successful few years,”  Kristen said after his appointment.

IPL: Daniel Vettori grateful to Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Meanwhile, Vettori expressed his gratitude for the eight years he has spent with Royal Challengers Bangalore.

“I am extremely grateful for the eight years I have spent with RCB, as a player and a coach and I wish the franchise all the best moving forward,” Vettori said.