Gary Kirsten plots Sri Lankas 2027 World Cup-winning roadmap

It is a significant move to have Gary Kirsten at the helm of Sri Lanka’s cricket team. Former South Africa batter and highly experienced coach, Kirsten brings with him a wealth of knowledge and expertise having worked with top teams in the past. His impressive coaching stint with India, where they won the ODI World Cup in 2011, followed by leading South Africa to Test mace victory in 2012, and eventually to the number 1 ranking in the ICC team rankings, speaks volumes about his capabilities. As head coach of the Gujarat Titans team that won the inaugural season of the IPL in 2022, he proved once again that he has a proven track record of success. With his two-year stint as Sri Lanka’s head coach commencing on April 15, Kirsten recently shared his ambitions and goals for the side. Speaking to reporters in Colombo on Thursday, he outlined what he hoped to achieve with the team. Kirsten expressed his desire to see the team performing well across all formats, particularly with the men’s World Cup just around the corner. As stated on the [Cricket World Cup](https://www.icc-cricket.com/tournaments/cricketworldcup) website, the tournament is expected to be held in October-November 2027, which will be co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. Sri Lanka has not reached the semi-finals of an ODI World Cup since 2011, which was also Kirsten’s last year working with India. Prior to that, Sri Lanka had not achieved this feat. Kirsten pointed out that his immediate priority with the team is to understand the roles he wants his players to fill in each format.