His side has played some dominant cricket during the twenty/20 and one-day series against New Zealand and will go into tomorrow's first test at the University Oval as a strong favourite.
The first question from a visiting journalist yesterday suggested even the locals were "giving their own team no chance".
It was met with a good-natured chuckle and a shrug which was not exactly the dismissive kind.
"I think we are looking forward to the series," Kirsten responded.
"It has been a great tour for us so far. I think we've played better as the games have gone along but it is a different format and we need to make sure that we're mentally up for this.
"We've had some indifferent test cricket of late and we've certainly put our peg in the ground in terms of what we want to achieve as a test match side.
We also know we have to be able to play in any conditions and make the type of plays during the game that is going to allow us to really have the success we are looking for."
Both teams have made some personnel changes from the one-day series. New Zealand welcomes back captain Ross Taylor, experienced seamer Chris Martin and former captain Daniel Vettori, while South Africa has called in experienced wicketkeeper Mark Boucher, leg spinner Imran Tahir, seamer Vernon Philander and batsmen Jacques Rudolph and Alviro Petersen.
Philander has been a revelation for South Africa this summer. In four tests he has taken 30 wickets at an average of 13.23 runs. Tahir has been pretty useful as well, picking up 14 wickets since making his test debut against Australia in November.
"What I'm really excited about is we are giving young guys a go and they are performing and doing well. It just goes to show we are very fortunate to be blessed with lots of talent in the country."
While confident, Kirsten was also respectful of the talent in the home team. Martin has a great record against South Africa, Taylor is the best batsman in the country and Vettori brings a wealth of experience.
Asked if he was tempted to go with an all-seam attack, Kirsten gave a cheeky grin then poured cold water on the suggestion.
"I don't think so. It is always nice to have a spinner in your test side. I think it is very important for a number of reasons.
"It is certainly not something that is on our radar at the moment. But we've still got two days to go, so we'll see what's on offer."
