"Got a phone call whilst I was at the IPL" - Gary Kirsten on Pakistan coaching job

Pakistan's newly-appointed white-ball coach Gary Kirsten revealed that he was approached for the job amid his stint in IPL 2024. The former South African opener stated that he was always interested in an international role and his grown-up kids make it easier for him to focus now.

Kirsten will start his tenure with the Men in Green from the four-game T20I series against England, beginning on May 22 in Leeds. The 56-year-old's big responsibility will be the 2024 T20 World Cup, as Pakistan hope to lift the trophy for the second time.

Speaking to talkSPORT, Kirsten revealed that it's always been a privilege to him to coach an international side and is looking forward to working with Pakistan.

"I got a phone call whilst I was at the IPL and, they asked whether I was interested. I'm always interested in an international job. It's always just a massive privilege to be coaching in that space. I haven't done an international job since coaching South Africa towards the end of 2013.

"My kids are a little bit older now, which makes it slightly easier to travel, and to work with an international team of the likes of Pakistan was very appealing to me."

The Cape Town-born cricketer produced excellent results when he was Team India's coach. He led them to No.1 in the ICC Test rankings and the 50-over World Cup win in 2011.

"You get a little bit more thick-skinned" - Gary Kirsten

Gary Kirsten. (Image Credits: Getty)

Banking on his extensive coaching experience, Kirsten highlighted that he understands the presence of certain problems in every team. However, he credited the late Bob Woolmer for being thick-skinned and added:

"I've been around the coaching circuit enough to know that, pretty much any team environment that's not winning, you will get factions. The fact is, it could be highlighted even more in certain cultures and environments. The one thing about being a coach of over 20 years now is that you get a little bit more thick-skinned."

"And that's the one thing I did learn from Bob [Woolmer], by the way. He had a really thick skin by the end of his coaching career. Because you're just trying to do as best a job you can, accepting the fact that when the team's not doing well, there's always going to be a whole bunch of criticism."

Meanwhile, Pakistan registered a 2-1 T20I series win over Ireland earlier this month.