Former Indian opening batter Virender Sehwag supports Rahul Dravid and says we made Gary Kirsten after winning the 2011 World Cup. Virender Sehwag made an interesting record on the role of Coach in an International team and remembers the show of Gary Kirsten’s stint with team India.
Sehwag Backs Rahul Dravid
Team India is taking turns to end its ICC drought when Rohit Sharma‘s side takes part in ODI World Cup later this year in home condition. The Schedule for ICC World Cup was announced on Tuesday this week where India has been scheduled to play the first match against Australia on October 8.
The side had won its last ICC trophy in 2013 under MSD, who was the last Indian captain to hold ODI World Cup.
The World Cup in 2011 took place where India being co-hosted alongside Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The Indian team coached by Gary Kirsten enjoyed a great tenure and defeated Kumar Sangakkara’s Sri Lanka in the final and this year, it will be on the hands of Rohit and coach Rahul Dravid to bring an end to India’s trophyless returns at the ICC tournaments for the past 10 years.
During the schedule unveiling event hosted by the ICC in Mumbai, Virender Sehwag being part of the 2011 winning team had discussions about the upcoming World Cup including his favorites, India’s chances, and his own experiences at the tournaments.
Sehwag also talked about the criticism Rahul Dravid has faced following India’s recent defeat in the World Test Championship final against Australia and made a rather interesting remark on the role of coaches.
Sehwag on Players’ Responsibilities Over ICC World Cup
Sehwag stated that players are responsible for the reputation of coaches, and claimed that it was Team India that made Kirsten’s career as coach.
Over the years, several Indian stars have spoken highly of Kirsten, but in recent events, former India opener Virender Sehwag belittled Kirsten’s role in the 2011 World Cup win and remarked that it was the players who made Gary Kirsten.
“Once the player is on the ground, the reputation of the coach depends on him. If the player performs good, the coach is lauded, and vice versa. We reached WTC Final but no one was talking about the fact that we reached there. Everyone was critical of us losing the final. Rahul Dravid is a good coach, but at the end of the day, a player has to do the job,” Sehwag said at the ICC event.
“We made Gary Kirsten after winning 2011 World Cup. He coached many teams after that, but didn’t win anything except IPL. There too, Ashish Nehra was working a lot more than Kirsten. And this is actually true, you can see it even while watching on the television,” Sehwag stated.
“So, for me, the Indian coaching staff should prioritize keeping the players fresh and getting 100 percent out of them. If that goes well, you can see the Indian captain lifting the World Cup,” Sehwag further added.
Gary Kirsten’s Stint As Coach
Kirsten was the coach of the Indian cricket team from 2008 to 2011, going on to win the 2011 Cricket World Cup. Kirsten ended his tenure as coach after India won the 2011 Cricket World Cup defeating Sri Lanka by 6 wickets and 10 balls to spare on 2 April 2011 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, India.
He was appointed as the coach of the South African cricket team in June 2011, and he stepped down in August 2013.
Since leaving Team India in 2011, Kirsten coached South Africa for two years between 2011-13 but failed to guide the side to an ICC title. He then had an unsuccessful stint with BBL side Hobart Hurricanes before being named the Royal Challengers Bangalore head coach in 2019.
He only had IPL 2022 trophy with the victory of Gujarat Titans against Rajasthan in the IPL 2022 final which was the only trophy after his 2011 ICC trophy.
However, the side endured a dismal season, finishing at the bottom of the table. Gujarat Titans eventually picked Gary Kirsten as head coach in their first season of the IPL in 2022, where they won the title.
