LAHORE: Gary Kirsten has expressed his desire to win at least one title as a coach of the Pakistan during his two-year term.
Kirsten spoke to the PCB Podcast, calling it a "wonderful privilege" to be offered the job of Pakistan white-ball coach. "I think Pakistan sits as one of the top four to five coaching jobs in the world internationally," he said. "What is important is that I have the opportunity to work with some of the best cricketers in the world and that excites me."
Kirsten had arguably the highest profile coaching job in the world when he was appointed coach of India in 2008, famously ending his tenure on the shoulders of Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina, who hoisted him up for a lap of honour after India won the 2011 ODI World Cup. If he sees out his current two-year contract, he will oversee Pakistan in three white-ball ICC events: two T20 World Cups and a home Champions Trophy in 2025.
"The important thing for me is to understand where the team is at and where we want to go to - whether that is winning World Cup events, which, by the way, is not easy. Often some people think you just pitch in and you're going to win the championship.
"But if you can win one of those three ICC Events, that will be an amazing achievement on its own, whether it's the upcoming event or it's two years from now. My job is to make sure that the team operates at its best, it's as simple as that. And if the team is operating at its best, we will always have a good chance of winning a trophy.
"So for me, it is important to understand where is the team now and where its need to go to be able to compete right at the top of the pile, and that's winning ICC events. You can't guarantee a trophy, but what you can do is put the steps in place to give yourself the best chance of winning a trophy. And that's really what I'll tend to do."