Not so long ago, Gary Kirsten was the toast of the cricketing world, thanks to his crucial role as coach in the turnaround that Team India underwent following a disastrous period after the 2007 World Cup loss in the early rounds. 
The left-handed batsman from South Africa was credited with not only the change of fortunes for India which won the 2011 World Cup convincingly, but also with unearthing Next Gen talent in the form of Virat Kohli, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Ravi Ashwin and several others who're now forming the backbone of the team.
However, on the day that his native team South Africa convincingly retained the chokers' tag in World Cricket with another suffocating performance against a buoyed English team at the CT13 tournament, Kirsten appears to have quietly faded into the background, having relinquished his position as coach of the team. 
So, what went wrong for 'Genius Gary' within a matter of two years? Did the magic merely fade away? Was he trying the same medicine to cure different ailments? Were the Proteas too big for Gary's small boots or vice versa? 
Known for his brutal honesty, Kirsten merely admitted that his team had 'choked' yet again. "The only way I can answer that is I don't think there is a secret recipe. I just hope we can cross the line in one of these semifinal events and turn it around," he had said prior to the game. 
Now that things haven't worked out, would it be fair to lay the blame on the coach's doorstep? 
On his part, Kirsten himself is under no illusions. In an interview published on the CT13 website, he says: "We (SA) certainly haven't improved, and that's where the question mark needs to come over me, so maybe its a good decision that I am leaving. As a coach, you always want to take the team forward in some way, I think there are some good signs."
For someone who was part of the team that first earned the 'chokers' tag during the Hansie Cronje era, Gary Kirsten's discontent is quite understandable. South African cricket officials will have to think hard as the man who is taking over from Gary is Russell Domingo, isn't really known for his astuteness. He was coach of the current SA T20 side and was part of Kirsten's support staff, but at 38 years of age, can he really grapple with some of the senior statesmen in the team?
At the top level, the issue could be with the South African test captain himself. Graeme Smith is known to be a boorish leader unlike MS Dhoni who at the worst of times has a veneer of calmness about him. Also, the Proteas were already winning matches as a test team before Gary came in, so Smith wouldn't probably give a damn to his perspectives. 
Unlike in the Indian context where Kirsten had clear goals to work with, his sojourn with his national team appears to have been built on patriotism more than necessity. The South African game was based on clinical efficiency whereas Gary favors a team with role clarity and cameraderie as its cornerstones. 
When he took over, the Proteas were already close to the top. They had one of the best bowling attacks in world cricket (they still do) and a batting lineup that boasted some solid players like Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers with the likes of Faf du Plessis, the two Petersons and a host of satellite players who could turn a match around. 
The only aspect of the South African game that elicited smirks was their 'choking' in crucial games in the shorter format. However, over two years, the cricket administrators appeared to be in a quandry over who should lead which team. As a result we had a bevy of captains at the helm - something that a coach abhors naturally! 
The opinion is still out whether Kirsten is leaving at the apt time? 
We believe South Africa doesn't require Kirsten now, for they're already a crack outfit. What they require is someone like an Ian Chappell who can counter the smug Smith, support de Villers with strategic inputs and walk into the SABC office and demand the selection he needs to guard against any further choking.