While the eyes of the cricketing world will be on Gary Kirsten next week and whether he can lead India to a home Test series triumph over Australia, for the rest of the Kirsten family their dreams are more focused at the other end of the international cricket spectrum and whether they can coach their respective sides to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011.

This weekend Peter Kirsten will try and help Jersey, a tiny island in between England and France, with a population of 90,000 people, try and take the next step on the road to qualification for Asia in 2011.

Jersey will be joined by Afghanistan, Fiji, Hong Kong, Italy and hosts Tanzania for a tournament that involves 18 matches over eight days.

And if Peter and his players can take that next step, in the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 4 in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, then that would take the island side closer to a potential meeting with Kenya, coached by another brother, Andy Kirsten, in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier in April next year.

For that to happen, Jersey will have to finish in the top two of the six teams in action in Africa. That will send it to the Division 3 event in January 2009 and that will be one step from the 12-team Qualifier featuring the likes of Canada, Kenya and Scotland.

Four sides will make it from there to the ICC Cricket World Cup, with a dream of repeating the exploits of Ireland at the 2007 event.

The tournament begins on Saturday 4 October with the first round of matches with Jersey playing Tanzania while Hong Kong faces Italy and Fiji takes on Afghanistan, with the latter beating Jersey to the Division 5 title earlier this year. The final takes place on 11 October.

Peter Kirsten, who played 12 Tests and 40 ODIs for his native South Africa, admits that the brothers face very different challenges in their work with their respective national sides, but claims to already have one over his younger brother Gary.

"He might be preparing to take on the might of Australia, but he hasn't got any victories against USA, Singapore and Guernsey," joked Peter, who has already helped Jersey, who only became an ICC Member in 2005, through the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 4 and win the ICC European Championships Division 2 in his time as coach.

"We always compare notes when we speak. Gary had a great Test career and he has age on his side. It is a fabulous opportunity for him coaching India.

"It is a hugely different level of cricket but the basics remain the same – you're still batting, bowling and fielding."

Kirsten only became involved in Jersey cricket last year, following a speculative e-mail, after deciding that he wanted to coach away from his native South Africa.

"I basically wanted to go and coach out of South Africa and to gain a bit more experience. I'd been coaching in South Africa for the past 10-11 years so I studied quite a few websites and was pretty impressed by the structures that appeared to be present in Jersey. I asked around a few of my friends and got a good report," said Kirsten.

"I introduced myself via e-mail and they replied to me and it went from there.

"They were on a drive to go further in world cricket and up to this stage things have gone really well for us. I thoroughly enjoy coaching Jersey."

Kirsten believes much of his work has been focused on improving the intensity of training at this level of the game and the players, who all have full-time jobs away from cricket, have responded brilliantly to his enthusiasm and passion for coaching.

Sam Dewhurst, a 21-year-old leg-spin bowler whose brother Andy is also in the squad – Jersey have four sets of brothers in the 14-man playing party – believes that Kirsten has had a massive impact on him and his teammates.

"I think it's huge that somebody of his calibre wants to help a developing cricket nation. It is massive for us.

"He brings a lot of experience from his playing days and passes that onto each of the players.

"He speaks to different players in different ways and he's very good at man management. He knows what he wants and he knows how to deliver that."

Although it is a distant dream, Peter admits it would be very special if India, Jersey and Kenya all made it to the ICC Cricket World Cup one day with the brothers in charge of the respective teams.

"That would be amazing – it would be something of a record," he said.

"Andy coaches Kenya, who has played in World Cup competitions before, but for us there is a very long way to go. To get through this Division 4 tournament we're going to have to play some very good cricket."

And while his focus will very much be on helping Jersey through this tournament, he will also have one eye on the challenges that await Gary in India in the coming month.

"It is a big series for him. He hasn't won a Test series for India yet. They drew with South Africa and they lost the Test series in Sri Lanka, although they took the one day series, but knowing him like I do, I know he would like to have a good series win at home," said Peter.

"It is whether Gary can combine the younger players with the older players in the Test arena is his biggest challenge.

"They (India) have a class top six and if they get them working I can see the series going India's way."