The former Zimbabwe coach Andy Flower has praised the decision of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee to appoint the former India opener Gautam Gambhir as their new head coach in the senior men’s side.
The current coach of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) has worked with Gambhir in the past during the IPL for the Lucknow Super Giants franchises in 2022 and 2023, while Andy Flower was the head coach and Gautam was the mentor of the side.
On both of those occasions, the team qualified for the playoffs round of the competition, before the latter moved to his old team- Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the mentor role.
‘I think Gautam Gambhir is going to be successful’- Andy Flower
The former top-order batter for the Zimbabwe side, Andy Flower has hailed Gambhir in a way he shares his strong opinions and remains crystal clear with his views on the game. He also spoke about how GG loves being an Indian and representing the country in any shape.
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The call has been made on the back of his successful time for the KKR side in the IPL 2024, where his mentorship helped them to end their decade-long wait for the trophy in the tournament, getting the better of the Sunrisers Hyderabad, at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
‘Well, the first thing he’s got to do is just give up his legends cricket at the moment. He’s quite a man Gautam Gambhir, I really enjoyed working with him. He’s got strong opinions; he’s got strong clear views on the game.’ The former Zimbabwe coach Andy Flower expressed to Sony Sports. ‘He’s very decisive, he’s a very proud Indian, he loves Indian cricket and his position, representing Indian cricket. I think it’s a good appointment and I think he’s going to be successful.’
The former head coach of the side Rahul Dravid has ended his tenure on a successful note, by helping the side win their second title in the T20 World Cup after 17 years and ending their 11-year-old in clinching an ICC trophy, after taking responsibility in 2021, where India were kicked out from the group stage of the 20-over ICC event.
Gautam Gambhir’s challenge going forward in his next three years, till the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa, would be to build a team consisting of both experience and youth. With three senior members of the side- Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravindra Jadeja taking retirement from T20Is, he also needs to find a replacement.
Former opening batter of India Abhinav Mukund has also praised the choice of going with Gautam Gambhir as the head coach, highlighting how he admires the young generation so much. Under his captaincy, KKR went on to win their first two IPL trophies in 2012 and 2014.
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No one forgets what he did for the national team during the final of the 2007 Men’s T20 World Cup against Pakistan and the 97-run knock in the 2011 ODI World Cup against Sri Lanka, which shows how much Gautam Gambhir knows how to handle the pressure.
‘He’s a really good choice for the job. A lot of these younger players look up to him and respect him. He’s very astute on the field we’ve seen him as a captain but now more as a coach brought the team to success after 10 years.’ Mukund reflected on the appointment. ‘I’m sure he will be thinking I want to take this legacy forward. Won a world cup, let’s win a lot more in the next two or three years.’
Gautam Gambhir’s first charge in the position will be from the away Sri Lanka series, starting on July 27.