After taking charge of the Sri Lankan cricket team, Gary Kirsten found himself looking back at a brief yet complicated chapter of his coaching career--his time with Pakistan.
It lasted only five months, with just six T20 matches. By his own admission, it was “pretty much incidental in terms of an experience.” But the memories, especially of the people, stayed with him.
Gary Kirsten, under whom India won the 2011 ODI World Cup, had a short stint with the Pakistan senior men's team between April 2024 and October 2024.
In October last year, he resigned as Pakistan head coach citing differences with the PCB over team selection, captaincy and external interferences. One of those key conflicts was when the PCB announced Mohammad Rizwan as Pakistan's white-ball captain.
Kirsten was not happy with the decision to appoint the wicketkeeper-batter captain.
In an interview with BBC, Kirsten spoke honestly about what made that stint so challenging. He pointed to a recurring issue--interference. While he didn’t name anyone, he made it clear that it affected his ability to do his job the way he believed it should be done.
“As I’ve journeyed around the world -- this is now my fourth international job -- you get to experience different levels of interference. And every country has a slightly different way of looking at it. And I think that was the real challenge there, is the level of interference can get quite intimidating, and it can also get quite involved. And sometimes where you have no -- or very little --influence as a coach, then what’s the point of doing it? I mean, I only do this job because I want to help a group of people be the best they can be. I’ve been a cricket professional, you know, since I was 20 years of age. I’m now 58. That’s 38 years in the game. The understanding that you could actually add some value there, wherever you go is, for me, really important. And if that is lost and you have no influence, then I don’t see the point,” Kirsten said.
For someone who has spent nearly four decades in cricket, that lack of influence was more than just frustrating--it went against everything he believed coaching should be.
Yet, despite the difficulties behind the scenes, his connection with the players remained strong.
When reports emerged that Pakistan players were fined after failing to reach the semi-finals of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, Kirsten didn’t react with anger, but with sadness.
“I’m not particularly shocked (by reports of Pakistan players being fined). For me, it’s just sad. I mean, those players are giving their all and I’ve got to know them well. You know, all of them. So I’ve got an emotional attachment to a lot of those guys. I saw them in Colombo and it was great connecting with them again. And they’re good guys. They want to do well for their country. So it’s never nice when you see that,” Kirsten said in an interview.
His words reflected not just a coach’s perspective, but someone who genuinely cared about the individuals behind the jerseys.
That bond, he explained, is what makes cricket special.
“In the end, I just enjoy working with cricket players. And if you have cricket players, whether they’re from England, West Indies, Zimbabwe, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, they’re cricket players, they’re professionals. We talk the same language. We connect on similar things, and we’re professionals in that space. And you know, I enjoyed the Pakistan players, I did. I thought they were dedicated to the game.”
Looking back, Kirsten kept his assessment simple and grounded.
“It was just five months, six T20 games in total. So, pretty much incidental in terms of an experience.”
Now in a new role with Sri Lanka, he moves forward with the same philosophy that has guided him for years—focusing on players, connection, and the ability to make a real difference.
