EXCLUSIVE

Melbourne: Gary Kirsten, who was coach when India won the 2011 World Cup, spoke to The Telegraph at some length.

Kirsten, 47, is also a former (stand-in) captain and coach of his native South Africa.

Right now, Kirsten is with the South Africa squad as a consultant. His contract ends with the World Cup.

Excerpts...

Q The World Cup is different from a tri-series or a bilateral contest. What does it take to succeed?

A Players, in any case, are faced with pressure each time that they walk on to the park. It's a notch higher in the World Cup. The ability to turn up and do something special is important... Having the ability to perform in certain situations... To talk of the 2011 World Cup, Suresh Raina had a good innings in the quarter final, Ashish Nehra and Munaf Patel bowled very well in the semi-final, (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni had a great final and Yuvraj Singh had been good throughout.

Among batsmen, you've picked AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla, Virat Kohli and Brendon McCullum as the ones who could stand out in this edition of the World Cup... How are they going to handle the pressure?

They'll have different ways to manage expectations. Each one of them has the confidence to perform in the most pressure-packed environment. Top players have the ability to do special things, they have a roadmap to deal with situations.

Just how differently do coaches approach a World Cup?

To talk of my experience with India, we started preparing for 2011 some 18 months before. We began looking at different scenarios. In every series, we played as if we were in the knockout phase of the World Cup... Coming to the World Cup, we kept it low key in the group stage, not focusing much on the end of the tournament. That way, we kept ourselves fresh and, on reaching the quarter final, kicked into a higher gear.

So, there were two phases in India's 2011 campaign?

Indeed. From the quarters onwards, we increased our intensity and started to focus on what was needed to win every game.

Coming to this World Cup, are you excited about any coach?

All coaches can bring that extra bit to the team. However, no coach can come up with a blueprint for success. I say that because there's no blueprint for winning a World Cup... I'll definitely be interested to see how South Africa's coach, Russell Domingo, goes.

Well, what does a coach do?

A coach puts the pieces together... He navigates the team through the highs and the lows. Obviously, he's got to know how to bring the best out of every player.

What makes you say this is South Africa's best chance, after 1999, to win the World Cup?

We have a very strong batting line-up and have a good seam attack, which is important in Australian conditions... Then, in AB (de Villiers) we have an inspirational captain.

I'm not using the word 'chokers', but why have South Africa kept tripping in the World Cups?

Chokers is a horrible word... At some point, things will turn around.

Hasn't South Africa's sports minister, Fikile Mbalula, put more pressure on the team by saying 'don't return as losers'?

The sports minister is a special person and means well. He didn't mean anything in a negative sense. He's quite upbeat about our chances.

You've talked of captaincy. How do you rate Dhoni?

If you look at the stats, it would be difficult to argue with Dhoni's achievements... But you also need to look at him beyond the stats... I enjoyed working with Dhoni and we respected each other. He may not have been that consistent (overall), but India have played unparalleled cricket under him. He's been a great tonic.

As captain, what sets Dhoni apart from the rest?

Dhoni's been ready to take all the pressure, he's always game when it comes to leading from the front. He'll be the first to say 'let's take the pressure and just get on with the ride'. I know Dhoni's been criticised at times, but he's creative tactically... We had a collaborative leadership structure, with some senior players around, and he accepted the options and ideas.

But weren't you surprised that Dhoni retired from Test cricket with one match remaining (in Sydney)?

Dhoni must have had reasons, but I'm not aware of them. So, I shouldn't comment.

Instead of seeking to take the credit himself, Dhoni thanked you for letting him bat at No.5 in the 2011 final against Sri Lanka...

That was nice of Dhoni. But, then, he's that type. We'd been discussing scenarios and the left-right combination came into the equation as Gautam Gambhir was at the other end... We shared an understanding where Dhoni would ask me, not tell me. We respected each other.

Your thoughts on Virat Kohli, Dhoni's successor as India's Test captain...

I haven't worked with Virat as a leader, but have certainly known him as a person. He also likes to lead by example, I think. He's an intense bloke, but sometimes, you have to be wary of too much intensity in a captain.

T20 has grown even bigger between 2011 and now. Is it going to impact more significantly in this World Cup?

The game has already been impacted and a wide range of skills are coming up. That said, each format has its own identity. You cannot have an out and out T20 strategy in an ODI, but you can take some aspects and use them.

How would you sum up the formats?

Test cricket tests your courage, resilience and determination... ODIs test your ability to think and to strategise... T20 tests the variety of skills you possess. Each format has something different to offer.

Generally, what's the bigger challenge - to get the strategy right or to improvise within what has been planned?

Getting the plans right is important, understanding how to approach a certain situation. It's about knowing when to play aggressively and when not to... It's about risk management: When to take risks and when not to.

Many of the ODI rules keep changing...

They're a great addition to the game. The players have got used to the latest changes.

Finally... What's the secret behind your remarkable fitness?

(Laughs) It's thanks to my running full marathons and mountain biking. Everybody has to do something or the other.