Hyderabad: Former India coach Gary Kirsten always had the belief that the immensely talented Virat Kohli will grow into a "great cricketer" and the South African considers himself fortunate to have been a part of that process.
"I always had a different kind of feeling when I started working with Virat Kohli. From the beginning, I was very sure that he was a rare talent and would become a great player. He grew massively in these past few years and has matured a lot. I was fortunate to be part of that process of seeing him grow and that give me immense pleasure," said Kirsten.
Kohli made his debut in India's limited-overs squad in 2008 and was part of 54 ODIs during the Kirsten years, scoring five centuries. Since Kirsten's departure as India coach, following the World Cup win in 2011, Kohli has matured to become the best batsman in the Indian side and has also graduated to the Tests. However, Kirsten was careful not to make any comparisons between Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar.
Asked whether Kohli be able to step into Sachin Tendulkar's shoes once the legend calls time on his illustrious career spanning close to two and a half decades, Kirsten was very cautious about his choice of words.
"I have always been very careful about appointing someone in that place (Tendulkar's replacement). It's a very dangerous position and very risky to name anyone. That's something that you guys (media) do but I won't do that.
"All I can say is that Kohli is a fantastic batsman whom the opposition bowlers are finding it difficult to get out. The teams nowadays do a lot of planning to get him out," he said.
Kirsten was effusive in his praise for current coach Duncan Fletcher and said the Zimbabwean's coaching philosophy and situation was quite different from his.
© ndtv
"I always had a different kind of feeling when I started working with Virat Kohli. From the beginning, I was very sure that he was a rare talent and would become a great player. He grew massively in these past few years and has matured a lot. I was fortunate to be part of that process of seeing him grow and that give me immense pleasure," said Kirsten.
Kohli made his debut in India's limited-overs squad in 2008 and was part of 54 ODIs during the Kirsten years, scoring five centuries. Since Kirsten's departure as India coach, following the World Cup win in 2011, Kohli has matured to become the best batsman in the Indian side and has also graduated to the Tests. However, Kirsten was careful not to make any comparisons between Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar.
Asked whether Kohli be able to step into Sachin Tendulkar's shoes once the legend calls time on his illustrious career spanning close to two and a half decades, Kirsten was very cautious about his choice of words.
"I have always been very careful about appointing someone in that place (Tendulkar's replacement). It's a very dangerous position and very risky to name anyone. That's something that you guys (media) do but I won't do that.
"All I can say is that Kohli is a fantastic batsman whom the opposition bowlers are finding it difficult to get out. The teams nowadays do a lot of planning to get him out," he said.
Kirsten was effusive in his praise for current coach Duncan Fletcher and said the Zimbabwean's coaching philosophy and situation was quite different from his.
© ndtv
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