Gujarat Titans ended a magnificent debut Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign by winning the trophy, and among the key people behind their success was head coach Ashish Nehra. Gary Kirsten, the Titans’ batting coach and mentor, was all praise for his colleague after the season ended and hailed him as one of the best tactical coaches in the league. Kirsten, of course, knows Nehra very well from his days as India’s head coach. Kirsten was the coach, and Nehra a part of the squad, when India won the 2011 World Cup.
“Ashish is a close friend and we have walked a long journey together,” Kirsten told Cricbuzz.
“As a player I enjoyed his willingness to keep understanding his game and his professionalism,” he said.
“He coaches with his heart, always thinking about his players and how he can help them. He’s low profile and does not like the spotlight,” Kirsten said about Nehra’s coaching style.
“He is tactically one of the best coaches in the IPL and is always talking to his players about how to make better performances,” Kirsten said.
“Ashish wants his players to have options and he helps them understand when to use them. A set game-plan is not possible in the IPL; the matches are extremely complex with new scenarios happening all the time,” he explained.
“This requires in-the-moment planning and players who can think for themselves and adjust a game-plan or use a different strategy in an over. As coaches, we help the players think through this,” he said.
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“I think we complement each other really well, and we trust each other’s work. I played the role of assisting him in his thinking and wherever I could, just to keep the wheels on track,” he said about their chemistry.
Gujarat Titans beat Rajasthan Royals in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium to lift the IPL 2022 trophy.
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