Since his cricketing days, Gautam Gambhir has always been a fighter in the middle, whether with the bat or it’s about winning the game in any situation. This is the quality that has also helped him in getting to his current position, where he is crystal clear and firm with his decisions in the team.
Gautam Gambhir stepped into the huge shoes of former head coach Rahul Dravid, who ended his tenure winning the T20 World Cup 2024 in the West Indies and the United States of America. With so many senior players taking retirement from the respective formats of the game, the new head coach needs to make vital decisions for the future.
But, these two individuals have been pretty different from each other. Dravid was always celebrated as calm and diplomatic, while the Delhi-born will bring a fiery and aggressive personality with him in the coaching department.
“Gautam Gambhir tried to grab the collar of the truck driver”- Aakash Chopra
The former opening batter for the Indian team, Gautam Gambhir, had an excellent time with the Kolkata Knight Riders during the 2024 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The purple franchise finished the league stage with nine wins in 14 games at a net run rate of +1.428.
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The Shreyas Iyer-led side also ended as the champions of the edition, bringing a wait of nearly a decade. The way he handled the young pacers throughout the season was incredible.
His former team-mate, Aakash Chopra, recalled a surprising incident with the current head coach, which showed the aggressive version of the player. Having shared the dressing room for Delhi, there were many instances where both of them used to compete for the same opening spot.
Chopra could hardly secure a long-term spot in the team, while Gambhir’s career took off, as he was the key member of the 50-over and 20-over final of the ICC tournament. The Agra-born recounted the incident where the veteran once was involved in a heated altercation with a truck driver in the middle of the road.
“(Gautam Gambhir is a) Passionate guy. (He is) very hardworking when it comes to his craft. A bit serious but scored a lot of runs. He always wore his heart on the sleeve. Temperament-wise, he can be very short-fused. But everyone has a different character.” The former Indian opening batter expressed this during the podcast show with Raj Shamani.
“Gautam is someone who once fought with a truck driver in Delhi. He got out of his car and climbed the truck to grab the collar of the driver because he made a wrong turn and was abusing him. I was like, ‘Gauti, what are you doing?’ So that’s made him, Gautam Gambhir.” The renowned commentator remarked.
The on-field altercation between the veteran and Virat Kohli is well documented. They had so many clashes as a player or even when the former became the mentor of the side. The incident between these two guys during the 2023 season of the IPL was famous before they improved their relationships during the recent edition of the tournament in 2024.
The 42-year-old had a decent start as the head coach, winning the T20I series in Sri Lanka before losing the 50-over series with a 2-0 margin. Now, his focus turns towards the five red-ball games at home against Bangladesh and New Zealand, while the acid test will be the five-Tests in Australia.