Former South Africa cricketer and India’s 2011 World Cup-winning coach Gary Kirsten reiterated that MS Dhoni-led Team India has played a mixed brand of cricket during the group stage encounters of the World Cup which country hosted in 2011.
On April 2nd 2011, India brought an end to the World Cup drought after 28 years at an iconic Wankhede Stadium while playing under the tutelage of Kirsten. The hosts thump Sri Lanka by six wickets. And, they were crowned as ODI World Cup champions since their first World Cup came in 1983 under Kapil Dev’s captaincy.
The Proteas veteran Kirsten stated they have played average cricket before going deep in the ODI showpiece.
Gary Kirsten on India’s 2011 World Cup moments:
Kirsten said India had played a high-quality game against Australia in the second quarter-final. The high-flying hosts went on to beat the Kangaroos by five wickets at 14 balls to spare at Ahmedabad.
“We had played average through the tournament…We had a really good quarter-final where we were under pressure. In my head, I just thought ‘we are not playing that well and winning. Imagine, when we play well’,” Kirsten told ICC website.
Furthermore, the hosts routed Pakistan by 29 runs at Mohali in the semi-final which further saw them coming close to the title. Kirsten had also praised the all-round efforts of Team India for doing basics right.
“It was tight all the way. We bowled OK – (274) is a really competitive score in the final. [I thought] this team was capable of doing that from a batting perspective. That for me was … ‘OK we can lose a few wickets here, we have got too many good players.’ That’s exactly what happened,” Kirsten added.
However, the way Men in Blue got into the groove set a platform for hosts to beat top-notch teams in the mega ICC event.
Interestingly, Kirsten was hailed as a hero by his wards following the successful World Cup campaign.
In the grand-finale, following a super ton from Lankan stalwart Mahela Jayawardene, India had a wobbling start. The Men in Blue lost two quick wickets at the score of 31, before Gautam Gambhir alongside Virat Kohli steadied India’s ship.
The Delhi-based duo went on to record crucial 83-run partnership for the third wicket.
“We just had too many good players. Someone was going to get a hundred, and in the end, Gautam Gambhir got (97). He was the rock of our batting line-up. We just had great players around,” Kristen further said.
The southpaw in Gambhir scored 97 off 122 deliveries before skipper Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh won the game for India in style.
Dhoni has slammed 79-ball 91* and Yuvraj remained unbeaten on 21 off 24 balls. They chased down a total of 275 in 48.2 overs. Well, Dhoni hit a trademark six to bring glory for the cricket frenzy nation.
Gary Kirsten on MS Dhoni’s Promotion at the 2011 World Cup:
Also, why speaking about Dhoni’s promotion, Kristen revealed he had found in Dhoni’s eyes that he’s eager to go and bat for his team. Pertinently, Dhoni came to bat ahead of the veteran southpaw Yuvraj in the finale of 2011 World Cup.
“There was just some thinking around … having a left-hand-right-hand combination against [Muttiah] Muralitharan. That’s why he [Dhoni] was quite keen to go up the order. He just knocked on the window, and said, ‘I want to go in next and I’d be good for that’. I was not going to say no,” Kirsten said on Dhoni’s promotion.
As of now, Kirsten is serving as the head coach of the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
Meanwhile, in the 2019 World Cup contest, India will take on South Africa on June 5 at Southampton.