• Former SA opener sets sights on taking SL to the top of world cricket

Newly appointed Sri Lanka Men’s National Cricket Team Head Coach Gary Kirsten officially began his two-year stint on 15 April, expressing confidence in the systems in place following discussions with senior players.

The South African, who met the nation’s print and electronic media for the first time on Thursday (23) at the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) Headquarters at Maitland Place, stated that his key priority was for everyone in the setup to move in the right direction.

Responding to a question by The Sunday Morning Sports as to whether he had sought any overriding authority from SLC in his current capacity, he said: “Obviously, when the team gets put under pressure, that is going to happen at some point. But, as I said, the most important thing is that we all move in the same direction, and that we all believe that direction is the right one for the team.”

He added that he was “comfortable with his introduction into Sri Lankan cricket”.

Kirsten, 58, was last in charge of Pakistan’s white-ball teams at the international level two years ago, after which a rift over selection powers in the wake of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s removal of head coaches from the selection panel prompted his abrupt departure.

The 2011 ODI World Cup winner with India said his immediate challenge was to get each player to play the best cricket that they could, while also aligning with SLC’s objectives over his 24-month stint.

The former Proteas opening batter, who succeeded former Sri Lankan skipper Sanath Jayasuriya, stated that managing the current workload of national players in the face of mushrooming franchise T20 leagues globally was a challenge for all international teams. He maintained that Sri Lanka was not an exception to the rule.

“These leagues are very prevalent in the game as we speak, and I guess Sri Lanka could feel proud that at least 8–10 players are involved in two big leagues at the moment. But, as you know, these leagues play a big role in a player’s life. So we, as an international team, need to manage the workload as best as we can.”

He commented that Sri Lanka was blessed with good depth across different formats and stated that it enabled the coaches and selectors to rotate players when the need arose, without allowing players to unduly burn out by being confined to a particular format.

Kirsten, who represented his country for 11 years, winning 101 Test caps and 185 ODI caps before calling it a day over two decades ago, said that he would strive to find the best balanced team across the different formats.

He reasserted that his priority was taking Sri Lanka to the summit of world cricket, as he did with South Africa. Kirsten took his native country to the top of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Rankings while being in charge from 2011 to 2013 before stepping down, citing family commitments.

The new Coach, who amassed over 14,000 runs in both Test and ODIs during his decade-long international career, also felt that language would not be a barrier for him when getting his theories across to his new charges.

“I don’t foresee any communication issues cropping up. English is a universal language when it comes to cricket, and if the players feel comfortable, they can say whatever they want to me in their mother tongue. I am mindful of [being seen as] coming into the Sri Lankan space and taking control and dominating that space. I am here to help Sri Lankan cricket. My job is to make this team a really good cricket team.”   

Kirsten’s maiden assignment will be Sri Lanka’s all-format tour of the West Indies, where they are scheduled to feature in a three-match ODI, three-match T20I, and two-match Test series from 3 June to 7 July this year.