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ToggleNew team India head coach Gautam Gambhir is set to meet the BCCI selection committee this week for the first time. India’s next assignment after the Zimbabwe tour will be the limited-overs tour of Sri Lanka.
As a player, Gambhir won two IPL championships with the Kolkata Knight Riders in 2012 and 2014. As the coach of the KKR squad that won the IPL earlier this year, he subsequently demonstrated his coaching abilities.
Following the announcement that VVS Laxman, the director of cricket at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, would not be taking on the top role, the former left-hander emerged as a favorite to succeed Dravid.
Gautam Gambhir to meet Indian selectors
The tour to Sri Lanka will also be Gambhir’s first assignment as India head coach where the Men in Blue will play 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is in July-August 2024.
Gambhir and the BCCI selection panel, headed by Ajit Agarkar will meet to discuss the Team India squad for the tour. They will also need to pick a new India captain in T20Is post Rohit Sharma’s retirement from T20Is.
Hardik Pandya to be the new T20I captain on a full-time basis; KL Rahul to captain in ODIs in Rohit’s absence
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja have retired from T20Is and are likely to be rested from ODIs as well to manage their workload. In their absence, the likes of Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul would step into the captain’s shoes in T20Is and ODIs, respectively.
According to Sports Tak, Pandya is expected to be T20I captain whereas KL Rahul will lead the team in ODIs. If Pandya makes himself unavailable for the series, then Suryakumar Yadav will don the captain’s hat.
“It is expected that in the absence of Rohit, Hardik and KL are the options to be given the responsibility of captain. Both have captained the team earlier. f Hardik is not available for the T20Is, you might see Suryakumar Yadav as captain in T20Is and Rahul in ODIs. But for now, it seems that Hardik and KL will lead the team,” the report stated.
Gambhir, who was instrumental in India’s victories in the 2011 ODI World Cup and the 2007 T20 World Cup, is expected to motivate and guide the squad to new heights, according to BCCI secretary Jay Shah.