It’s been one of the hardest good byes to say: Kirsten
April 5th, 2011 - 5:39 pm ICT by ANIMumbai, Apr 5 (ANI): The outgoing coach of Team India, Gary Kirsten, appeared emotional on Tuesday as he bid adieu, saying it is one of the hardest goodbyes he has ever had to say.
But, he appeared satisfied with the accomplishment of the last three years.
“It has been one of the hardest good byes I have had to say. It has been an amazing achievement to be a part of this special group of cricketers,” Kirsten told reporters in his farewell press conference here.
The South African, who took over as the coach with no prior experience, nurtured Team India for three years during which they reached the pinnacle of Test and one-day rankings, besides lifting the World Cup after a gap of 28 years.
“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,” Kirsten said.
Kirsten, who declined an offer to extend his tenure with Team India, further said: “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.”
Lauding Team India for an exceptional performance in the last three years, Kirsten said: “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.”
India scripted a glorious new chapter in their cricketing history on Saturday night by regaining the coveted Cricket World Cup after 28 years. The last World Cup victory for India came against the West Indies in 1983 at Lords in England.
In the nerve-wrecking summit clash of the 2011 edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup tournament at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, India beat Sri Lanka by six wickets. (ANI)
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Tags: 28 years, accomplishment, building trust, cricket world cup, farewell, gap, gary kirsten, going home, good byes, goodbyes, icc cricket world, icc cricket world cup, new chapter, paddy, special group, summit clash, test team, three games, west indies, world cup victory