He was never interested in coaching neither did he apply for the job, but it took exactly seven minutes for Gary Kirsten to land the high-profile India coach\u2019s job back in 2007.<\/p>\n
Speaking on the Cricket Collective podcast, Kirsten recalled the \u201cbizarre\u201d series of events that unfolded in 2007.<\/p>\n
Kirsten said he went for the interview on the invitation of Sunil Gavaskar, who was part of the coach selection panel, and ended up with the job after being offered his predecessor Greg Chappell\u2019s contract.<\/p>\n
\u201cI got an email from Sunil Gavaskar asking if I would consider coaching the Indian team,\u201d Kirsten recalled.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought it was a hoax. I never even answered. He sent me another email, and said, \u2018Will you come for an interview?\u2019 I showed it to my wife, and she said, \u2018They must have the wrong person\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo it was a bizarre entry into the whole thing, and rightly so. I mean, I had no coaching experience or anything,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI kind of arrived at the interview and I see Anil Kumble, who\u2019s then the Indian captain, and he says, \u2018What are you doing here?\u2019 I said, \u2018I have come for an interview to coach you!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Kirsten went on to become one of the most successful India coaches of all time, guiding the team to the top of the Test rankings in 2009, and then to the World Cup title two years later.<\/p>\n
Talking about the interview, Kirsten said he had gone unprepared, and when asked to present his \u201cvision for Indian cricket\u201d, he replied \u201cI don\u2019t have one\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cRavi Shastri, who was on the committee, said to me, \u2018Gary, tell us, what did you guys as the South African team do to beat the Indians?\u2019 I thought it was a great ice-breaker, because I could answer it and I answered it in about two-three minutes without saying strategies.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was suitably impressed, as was the rest of the board, because three minutes later \u2014 I had been in the interview about seven minutes \u2014 the secretary of the board slides across a contract to me,\u201d Kirsten added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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