Gary played 101 tests and 185 one day internationals for South Africa between 1993 and his retirement in 2004.

He became the first man from his country to play 101 Tests and, before Jacques Kallis helped him self to most of his records, was the South Africa's leading run scorer in both forms of the game and leading century maker.

After his retirement Gary focussed on achieving his ambition of combining cricket-specific coaching techniques with those applied in other sports and the business world. He worked with various teams and individuals in a consultancy capacity and was contracted by Cricket South Africa's High Performance Academy.

He is driven by a desire to understand what creates sporting success and enjoys looking beyond the traditional environs of cricket and into the worlds of golf, tennis and motor racing, amongst many others.

Gary's partner in his quest for the attitude of Champions with the Indian cricket team is Paddy Upton, biokineticist, physical trainer and executive coach. Such qualification don't often co-exist in the same person - for want of a better title within the ranks of Team India, he has become known as the 'mental and pysical conditioning coach.'

Gary's own experience of executive coaching in the business world, combined with his experience on the field and Paddy's contribution, is the reason he was appointed as India's head coach.

Cricket can be a hard game but it can a simple one, too. Gary and Paddy plan to share their journey with Team India with anyone who cares to join them. That is what GaryKirsten.com is all about.