Dale Steyn takes a dig at Kirsten

It is obvious that the South Africans have not taken kindly to Kirsten coaching India. Their dislike comes out plainly at Dale Steyn's post match press conference.

"I am not too surprised. That's the vibe they have given off to us. Once one or two wickets fall and things kind of go wrong they are pretty weak and the batsmen to follow didn't look they knew what they wanted to do. They didn't have a game plan or strategy. They were bowled out for 76 and, I guess, that's what happens when you don't have a game plan or strategy," .

The key words here are the words 'weak' – a dig at Upton the mental strength conditioner, 'game plan', and 'strategy', which is a dig at Kirsten, India's coach.

The support staffs of a cricket team feature rarely during a post match press meet and on top of it Kirsten has been keeping a low profile. So why did Steyn take a swipe? The fact is the mere presence of Kirsten in the Indian team rankles and despite assurance they are wary that their weaknesses will be used against them.

Kirsten- will he deliver?

Kirsten, the coach designate, is making all the right noises.
"The players are more important than the coach or the administrators and if they aren't happy with the working conditions or the staff then there's no point carrying on," he said.

However, having seen one who was all sound and fury and capped his tenure by running away, I am have become sceptical of people who deliver the mumbo-jumbo with ease.

All things considered,I have a sneaking admiration for Kirsten for the methodical manner he went about arriving at his decision. Even his hesitancy,because of rumours that the 'seniors' were unhappy, shows a man who wants to be clear and also make his position clear.

Nevertheless, the question persists, will he deliver?

A triangular love story

Whatmore will be more effective as a coach, writes Makarand Waingankar:

The irony is that Whatmore has hardly any experience of running an academy which
Kirsten as a High Performance Manager does. Kirsten’s background would have
benefited the NCA more than the Indian team.

Whatmore suits the role of India’s coach to a tee and Kirsten suits the NCA job; however, the seniors want Rajput to continue

Indeed, a triangular love story straight out of Bollywood.