Calcutta: Mike Horn prefers to be addressed as an "explorer," yet he's also come to be known as a motivator par excellence.
Horn worked with the Mahendra Singh Dhonis in the 2011 World Cup, was with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) when they won the IPL in 2014 and, yes, worked with champions Germany at the start and during the closing stages of the Fifa World Cup that same year.
Three months short of his 50th birthday, the Johannesburg-born Horn spoke to The Telegraph at the ITC Sonar on Wednesday evening.
As during the previous interviews, Horn was fascinating.
Excerpts...
Q You dropped off the radar after the 2015 World Cup... We didn't even see you during the last IPL. What happened?
A I had a family issue towards the end of February last year... My wife (Cathy) passed away, she'd been suffering from cancer... It was a blow to me and our daughters, Annika and Jessica... A huge loss for she'd actually been the pillar in my life.
Apologies for having asked... I wasn't aware...
(Emotionally) Cathy's passing away was quite traumatic... Sometimes, you think that life isn't fair. I've led a dangerous life, taken all the risks... Yet, she's the one who lost the battle to live... She'd reconciled to the reality, realised her time was about to end... Cathy's death has made the rest of the family realise that our time on this planet is short.
Has Cathy's demise made you appreciate life that much more?
I'm an explorer and, so, life holds a different value. I respect life, I fight for life... But when you see cancer in your family, see that it's killing somebody close, then you do get the feeling that it's better to go than live in that manner.
Despite the huge personal loss, you still kept your commitment to South Africa in the World Cup...
I had to, for I'd given my word to the Proteas. Sadly, they lost in the semi-final (to New Zealand). It ended an excellent chance to win a World Cup.
But you didn't undertake the circumnavigation between the Poles, did you?
I kept it on hold... However, to get away from the grief at home (near Lausanne), I took my daughters for a journey by road across Europe into Pakistan. That was between May and July... I then scaled K2... We wanted to remember only the good times, times of fun Cathy had as a wife and as a mother... In life, there are moments when you're knocked down mentally, knocked down emotionally. But you've got to get up quickly... I had to motivate myself all over again, find/do something to inspire me.
What did you tell your daughters?
Let's go and do something exceptional.
So, when will you start the circumnavigation?
On May 3, from Monaco.
Which means you won't be with KKR in the latter stages of the IPL?
I was supposed to be with the boys for the first two matches only. However, if KKR make the play-offs, I could dock my boat at some port and fly across for a few days. That's possible.
You were in Canada till early last week...
I was doing a small expedition in the Alberta province.
In Jacques Kallis, KKR have a new coach. In the past, you'd worked with Trevor Bayliss (now England's coach), but know Kallis well...
Bayliss was an amazing coach, but look at Jacques's stature... I've known him as a cricketer and as a person. He's reserved, yet so intense. You can feel Jacques's energy and he's got plenty of that around him.
Do you see a difference in the KKR environment this year?
There's already a certain dynamism in the team... The atmosphere is relaxed... It's interesting as the IPL has just started... Dynamism was there in 2014 as well, but not from the beginning... There's a culture in KKR, it's a family culture. A team's culture plays a big part in its success. And failure.
You've mentioned Kallis's stature... Is that a big advantage for him?
It's a fact that Jacques was an outstanding batsman and an outstanding all-rounder. So, when he says something, it's heard. Actually, Jacques has graduated from being a senior pro to Bayliss's assistant and now the KKR coach. The environment here is like that of a family and one from within is now the coach. Had the new coach been from outside, there may not have been the same calmness. It's a settled environment, which helps in doing well. There's uncertainty if somebody comes from outside... Jacques has the respect of the KKR players and if you respect somebody, you won't disappoint him.
From the outside, Kallis isn't much different from Bayliss...
Both don't overdo things, don't speak much... Jacques has given his players the right to go out and enjoy their cricket. He likes the training to be very focused, not monotonous. There's no point hanging around at nets, because the more you do that, the more you get fatigued. Indeed, fatigue by not doing anything. To last longer in such an intense tournament like the IPL, the training needs to be optimised. For Jacques, it's short and sweet.
Generally, what has Kallis been telling his players?
That 'you've got to enjoy your cricket and you've got to enjoy the IPL'... I agree with Jacques, for if you aren't having a good time, you shouldn't be here. For me, the IPL is about dynamism, fantastic cricket, entertainment... The IPL has the world's best players and is a melting pot of opportunities. The young Indian players have a great opportunity. They could learn by just observing the international and national players. In the IPL, they could grow twice as fast.
After 2012 and 2014, could KKR win the IPL in 2016 as well?
I hope so. It's a well-balanced team, with a very determined group of Indian players... The Manish Pandeys, the Yusuf Pathans... Manish is a guy who wants to take responsibility... There's Suryakumar Yadav, who hasn't reached the place he'd like to be in. He's working hard.
Besides skill, what's needed to win a high-on-intensity tournament like the IPL?
Respect for each other within a team... For a team to be successful, the 'me' has to become 'we'. Players have to share knowledge, share information... They have to support each other. Knowledge and information have to be transferred, a mechanism has to be in place. It's about collective responsibility. Nobody plays to lose. It's about a larger cause.
Which is?
The cause is to win. It's not about negative thoughts, not about trying to do better than the guy out on the park.
Professionally, you had a fantastic 2014... You helped KKR win the IPL and, a few months later, were part of the World Cup-winning German team...
(Smiles) Winning is always great, irrespective of the role you play. My role was to help cricketers and footballers survive in their world. So, I utilised my 25 years' experience of surviving massive odds... I shared my thought processes with the Gautam Gambhirs and the Philipp Lahms... I shared the way I approached challenges, how to go about having a vision, how to become more determined. Whether it was KKR or Germany, I couldn't have helped prepare them to lose. Couldn't have prepared them to die... In sport, death is not an option... You have to survive. To survive, you then need to think differently.
As you start on your circumnavigation in a few weeks, you won't be seen with Germany during Euro 2016 in France...
I was asked to join, but that won't be possible... Perhaps, I could again be with Germany in the 2018 World Cup... My circumnavigation would end in 2017, so there would be newer experiences to talk about. Even I need to reinvent myself.
[Germany are in Group C, together with Ukraine, Poland and Northern Ireland.]
Finally... What was it like working with Joachim Loew?
Fantastic. Both with Loew and Oliver Bierhoff, the manager. Bierhoff is somewhat like Jacques. Doesn't say much, but is absolutely clear about priorities. Plus, he's himself played for Germany... Loew and Bierhoff had put together a four-year programme. It ended only when Lahm lifted the World Cup on July 13. That was some planning.