Gary Kirsten to coach Royal Challengers Banglore in IPL 2019
IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore have announced former India coach Gary Kirsten as their head coach for the upcoming season of the cash-rich league.
Kirsten's appointment comes on the back of strong coaching credentials as it was Gary Kirsten, who guided India to the 2011 World Cup triumph and also guided India to number one spot in ICC Test ranking. The South African will succeed former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori.
RCB is one of the strongest teams in the history of IPL. But for some reason, the team is yet to win the title in 11 years history of the tournament. Despite the presence of stalwarts like Indian skipper Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers in the team, they managed to win just 6 out of 14 matches during 2018 edition of IPL.
In the wake of continuous poor show by the team, the franchise, on August 23, decided to sack the support staff which also included the head coach Daniel Vettori who had been associated with the franchise both as player and coach for the past eight editions.
Interestingly, the only player to survive sanction was Ashish Nehra, his position remains untouched and he will continue to be the bowling mentor of the team.
Gary, the former South Africa opener joined the RCB as batting coach in the 2018 edition of the league. Having played close to 700 matches (ODI, Tests and First Class) and scored close to 40,000 runs, he brings a wealth of experience to the team.
As per website sportstarlive, Commenting on his appointment, Gary said: “I had the privilege of coaching with the RCB team last season under head coach Vettori and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I look forward to continuing the journey with RCB and doing my best to help the franchise reach its potential.”
“I want to thank the team management for considering me in a leadership position with the franchise and I look forward to a successful few years,” he added.
Moving on from RCB, Vettori said, “I am extremely grateful for the eight years I have spent with RCB, as a player and a coach and I wish the franchise all the best moving forward.”