The current India pacer Avesh Khan who is in Zimbabwe for the ongoing five-match T20I series, has spoken about the coaching mindset of the new India head coach Gautam Gambhir, during an interview with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), before their fourth game of the series on Saturday.
Avesh Khan was part of the Lucknow Suer Giants (LSG) side during the IPL 2022 and 2023 season, where Gambhir was part of the coaching set-up, and helped the franchise in reaching their two consecutive playoffs.
The announcement of the new head coach of India side came on the back of Rahul Dravid’s tenure ending with the wrapping up of the last Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, where the ‘Men in blue’ got the better of the South Africa side to end their 11-year long wait for an ICC tournament.
‘Whatever I have learned from him, it’s about…’- Avesh Khan
Avesh Khan was a regular member of the T20I side for India in the past few years, before injury made his road quite tough for him to survive, as the Madhya Pradesh-born aimed to make a return in the ODI series, with 25 wickets at an economy of over nine.
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He changed his franchise in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and joined the Rajasthan Royals (RR) team, where he finished with 19 wickets in 16 games, at an economy of nearly 10. That was quite a decent comeback from the 2023 season, where he could pick up only eight wickets in nine games, at an economy of around 9.76.
The pace for Avesh Khan has been a huge weapon for him, to hurry the batters, who hardly get a chance to understand whether to come forward or go back for those sorts of awkward lengths of the delivery. He spoke about the coaching style of Gautam Gambhir, whose mentorship was quite vital for his progress at the beginning.
‘Whatever I have learned from him, it is about the mindset that you should always look to get the better of your opponent and give your 100 percent. In team meetings, as well as one-on-ones, he would speak less but would convey his point as to what is to be done.’ In a recent chat with the BCCI ahead of the fourth T20I game against Zimbabwe, Avesh Khan expressed. ‘He would assign tasks and roles to players and he has always been a ‘team coach’, he always wants to win and everyone to give their 100 percent.’
The mental toughness of the former India opening batter is quite incredible, and how he sticks with his plans for a long time, showing enough belief in the players whom he has picked and felt to be the best during the need of the hour.
The 27-year-old also displayed how much he was enjoying bowling at the Harare Sports Club in the ongoing series.
‘We have played on different wickets here. We played the first two matches on the same deck, there was good bounce in the first match but in the second it had flattened out.’ Avesh Khan narrated. ‘The conditions are good, since it is an open ground the ball also swings a bit.’
He also feels that the clarity of thoughts in the execution of Jasprit Bumrah set him apart in this format, as he looks to follow his path.
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‘Like Virat bhai said, he is once in a generation bowler, it is true and we all believe so. His style of bowling and his mindset are different, but the main (aspect) is his execution, for which we all practice.’ Avesh Khan continued.
With the end of the series, India will move to Sri Lanka for the three-match ODI and T20I series, which will be Gambhir’s first head-coach assignment.