Johannesburg, Jun 7 (IANS): Former India coach Gary Kirsten was Monday appointed the coach of the South African cricket team.

The 43-year-old South African has been given a two-year contract by Cricket South Africa (CSA).

Kirsten was the coach of the World Cup-winning Indian team and will take over the South African team ahead of two home series against Australia and Sri Lanka.

"Having filled the same position with the Indian national team for the past three years, I believe this is a natural progression as far as my coaching career is concerned.

"My coaching philosophy will not be any different than it was for India. I always endeavour to influence players in a positive way and give them options so that they can grow both as cricketers and as people," said Kirsten, who replaced Corrie van Zyl.

Kirsten's three-year stint with the Indian team ended with the World Cup win in April after 28 years.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) chief executive Gerald Majola was happy to welcome Kirsten.

"We are delighted to have Gary back as part of the CSA family. We have been through an exhaustive but rewarding process to find the best possible candidate for the job and we are totally confident that we have done just that. Gary's credentials and cricketing experiences speak for themselves and the board of CSA is confident that he will lead the Proteas to new heights in all formats of the game.

"Gary will now make recommendations regarding his key support staff and these positions will be announced as soon as contractual negotiations have been completed," Majola added.