Gary Kirsten is all set to join Royal Challengers Bangalore as batting coach for the upcoming season of Indian Premier League. He has been in IPL previously in coaching roles and the RCB stint could be another addition in his resume. The former South Africa batsman was coach of the Indian cricket team that won the 2011 World Cup in India and was earlier part of the Delhi Daredevils franchise.
RCB are yet to announce Kirsten's agreement officially but it is likely that he will take the batting coach's role because Daniel Vettori, who has been the head coach for RCB, will remain in the team's coaching staff. Kirsten is currentlly the head coach of the Big Bash League franchise Hobart Hurricanes, his first stint in BBL.
Bangalore have Vettori as their head coach for four years now. His stint with the team has given mixed results. In the 2014 season, RCB finished second from the bottom and a season later, they lost the second qualifier to Chennai Super Kings to finish third. The 2016 season was one of the best as they marched into the finals before losing to Sunrisers Hyderabad. The last season was a disaster as they won only three matches out of 14 and finished bottom of the table.
Kirsten had coached Delhi Daredevils in 2014 and 2015 before the franchise decided to remove him, ending his three-year contract after two years only. In the two seasons he was coaching Delhi, the team finished last and second-last.
The auctions for IPL 2018 will be held on January 27 and 28 in Bangalore and a franchise can retain upto five players. Virat Kohli, captain of the franchise, is one name that the team would like to retain for sure.
