India's 2011 World Cup winning coach Gary Kirsten has been appointed at the helm of Pakistan team. He will be coaching the men in green in ODIs and T20Is and his first major assignment will be the T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA. Kirsten is currently associated with Gujarat Titans and will only be able to join the team during the England tour where they will play four T20Is just before the World Cup.
Meanwhile, the former South Africa cricketer is looking forward to linking up with the Babar Azam-led side in the shorter formats. His contract is valid until 2026 and Pakistan will be playing two T20 World Cups and a Champions Trophy (at home) during this period. Kirsten feels winning one of the ICC events will be a massive achievement for him and the team but he wants to make sure Pakistan and players operate at their best and results will take care of itself.
"You can’t guarantee a trophy, but what you can do is put the steps in place to give yourself the best chance of winning a trophy. And that’s really what I’ll tend to do. Pakistan, by the way, and as we all know have got a history of performing well in World Cup events. So it’s just one of the steps that you need to take to go all the way. It’s as simple as that," Kirsten said while speaking to Pakistan Cricket in an interview.
"I think the important thing for me is to understand where the team is at and where we want to go to - whether that is winning World Cup events, which, by the way, is not easy. Often some people think you just pitch in and you’re going to win the championship.
"But, if you can win one of those three ICC Events, that will be an amazing achievement on its own, whether it’s the upcoming event or it’s two years from now. My job is to make sure that the team operates at its best, it’s as simple as that. And if the team is operating at its best, we will always have a good chance of winning a trophy. But if the team is not operating at its best, we won't and that would be the same for any team," Kirsten added.
Notably, Pakistan made it to the semifinal of T20 World Cup 2021 and were the finalists in 2022 in Australia where they lost to England in the title clash.
