JOIN US Kirsten’s contract with India is till next year’s World Cup in the sub-continent and according to the Afrikaans weekly Rapport, even though the CSA is interested in the left-hander, the Board might have to do away with him as long-time sponsor Standard Bank has stopped its sponsorship.
Ironically, the bank, under financial strain and facing retrenchment of staff, announced the end of its sponsorship on the same day the CSA had set up a panel to find a replacement for current coach Corrie van Zyl, who will return to his position as head of CSA’s High Performance Programme in Pretoria after the World Cup.
Rapport said it had reliably learnt that CSA had already been in discussion with Kirsten but he is likely to be paid much less in comparison to what he used to get in India unless another major sponsor comes comes in.
Kirsten is believed to be receiving a basic package of $1 million in India. Having led India to the top of the world Test rankings in December, Kirsten is the current favourite to take over as the new Proteas coach, even though he said that he has not committed to anyone yet.