MS Dhoni criticism surprising, says Gary Kirsten

Mumbai: India’s former World Cup winning coach Gary Kirsten is back in Mumbai looking fitter than ever, can easily give quite a few players a run for their money, as he walks in the hotel lobby. Kirsten who is in the city for a personal assignment to launch his wife Deborah’s book named Chai tea & Ginger beer: My Unexpected Journey … Cricket, Family and Beyond. Kirsten meanwhile is more than happy to be a loving husband and a caring father. Kirsten who looked hesitant to talk at first, spoke about how he liked MS Dhoni’s knock in the 2nd ODI played between India and South Africa at Indore. Kisten was surprised with the amount of criticism Dhoni is facing by the media and former players alike. “Absolutely not. Why? I don’t understand why people say that. We look at it from the outside. Everyone is surprised when people say that. Why must he go?” he says to DNA.com  LIVE SCORECARD: India vs South Africa, South Africa tour of India, 2015, 3rd ODI at Rajkot

“I have always said that he is one of the greatest players to have ever played. I have worked with him as a coach. He is a great player. He will be regarded as one of India’s great players if not the greatest captain. His performances tell the story. You just have to look at his performances,” says Kristen. Kirsten who has played 101 Test for South Africa believes that Dhoni is still most feared by bowlers everywhere in the world.
“The South African players will be happy if he wasn’t there in the team,” he says, before asking, “Who is going to replace him? Virat (Kohli) bats at No. 3. What is his (Dhoni’s) one-day average. Best in the world? (Laughs). I can’t understand the thinking,” he adds. He also discarded any talks of Dhoni losing his ability to score big runs “I saw some big shots this evening (Wednesday). I saw some huge shots. Do the media do that to the players? Why would they run a player down like it? He is one of the greatest players India have ever had. Would they do that to Sachin? I think it’s very unfair,” says Kirsten.  ALSO READ: MS Dhoni should be given the honour of deciding his retirement, feels Nayan Mongia

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The Indian team went through rough patch after Kisten left the coaching the team after winning the 2011 World Cup. Kirsten thinks that the current group of players are aggressive and still going through a transitional phase. “I think the Indian team has done well in the last few years to be honest. They won the Champions Trophy in 2013, it was a great result and another trophy for them. They have brought in a lot of young players. I kind of finished with a lot of the senior players. Many players were at the end of their careers. There was a new process unfolded for the preparation of the World Cup. I think there are some great young players who have come through. Rohit Sharma is shining, Ajinkya Rahane is playing beautiful cricket, Virat has come through as captain. He continues to play good cricket, Ashwin has done really well. These are exciting young players with great form. They have now played three-four years, it’s a good sign,” he says.

Kirsten who coached South Africa, achieving some success with the team is not surprised that the Proteas have done so well in India till now. “I think South Africa has got a great team. They have always had one. They always play well in India. So, it is not surprise for me that they are playing well. Most of the players are playing in the IPL. So they understand the conditions. They have got experience in the top six. The guys know the conditions. They have played a lot of games together. They have an experienced batting unit, so it doesn’t surprise me that South Africa are playing really good cricket at the moment. They are a great team with some exciting young talent coming through,” Kirsten says. ALSO READ: Indore crowd’s cheerful behaviour puts Cuttack incident behind, earns praise from AB de Villiers

Hinting that India should play to their own strengths regardless of the opponents Kirsten said “”India need to play to their strengths like South Africa always play to their strengths at home. People tend to forget that South Africa haven’t lost a Test series away from home in seven years. They know how to play away from home. They do really good preparation. They would have done their homework. They are not an easy team to beat.”

Kirsten is very much excited for the four match Test series to be played in the coming month once the ODI series concludes. “Every team needs to play to their strengths. Especially in Test cricket. That is what I love about Test cricket. As a Test-playing side, you know you are worth your salt as a team when you can perform in all sorts of different conditions. That is why I am not a fan of neutralising wickets. I think it’s great to play in different conditions around the world because that’s the exciting thing about Test cricket,” he said. ALSO READ: MS Dhoni credits bowlers for India’s victory over South Africa in 2nd ODI at Indore

Kirsten did state that he has been getting offers for coaching again which is just not ready for, he did not rule out any chances of a return as well. “There have been one or two phone calls. I am not in a position to make those decisions. I am enjoying my life out of cricket,” he says.

“You can never rule anything out in life. See what the situation is. I never say yes or never say no, it’s difficult,” he concluded.