'Winning the World Cup is within reach' - Former coach shows massive trust in Team India

It’s been more than a decade since India managed to win an ICC tournament. They came close on multiple occasions - qualifying for the finals of the T20 World Cup in 2014, Champions Trophy in 2017, World Test Championship in 2021 and 2023 and recently in the ODI World Cup final, to name a few. However, they could only secure a silver in these tournaments, leaving the fans in despair.

However, former India coach Gary Kirsten is hopeful to see the Men in Blue lifting a world title soon. He mentioned that Australia have mastered the art of winning titles but India isn’t far behind them. The 56-year-old added that the Rohit Sharma-led side has the right players in the mix and expects them to do well in the knock-out rounds of the major tournaments.

“I don't think it is easy to win a World Cup, it is really tough. Probably Australia mastered that better than any other country but India has the potential to compete at the highest level for World Cup success and glory due to depth in its cricket. I wouldn't be surprised if they secure a few victories soon,” Kirsten was quoted as saying by The Times of India.

“Undoubtedly winning the World Cup is within India's reach and they have the players who are capable of doing that. But there is still a lot that needs to be right to win a World Cup especially those knock-out games where anything can happen,” he added.

Just worried that sometimes bilateral series become irrelevant: Kirsten

The former South Africa international mentioned that bilaterals can become irrelevant at times as he promoted the tri-angular or quadrangular series to protect ODI cricket. Kirsten also added that he would love to see a world champion every year and that could be achieved via a point system.

“I love the three and four team tournaments but I am just worried that sometimes bilateral series become irrelevant. I would love to see a world-champion ODI team every year. That would be fun, maybe on the (basis of a) point system or the way they can set it up but I think contest is everything,” Kirsten said.