Gautam Gambhir’s biggest task as the new team India head coach will be to manage the transition period in the team, feels Aakash Chopra. Gambhir will take over the job from Rahul Dravid, whose tenure ended with team India’s T20 World Cup 2024 win.
Later this month, the former opener for India will probably lead the coaching staff in the white-ball series against Sri Lanka.
Chopra pointed out that even in One-Day Internationals following the 2025 Champions Trophy, Gambhir may need to make plans without some of those mainstays, as Rohit, Kohli, and Jadeja have already retired from T20Is.
However, he acknowledged that veterans like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja would also know when and how to leave.
“He will have to manage the transition. One has become easy as Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja) have said that their T20I career is over. So you have started walking on a new path by default in the shortest format. I don’t think any of them is leaving Tests at the moment.
ODI cricket will be that 50-50 thing, that what after the Champions Trophy? The next World Cup is in 2027, so the transition will start after the Champions Trophy. He will have to figure it out. The truth is we are talking about players who are legends, whose names come among the greatest of all times. So they would also know when and how to leave, and whether any of them can stay till 2027,” Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
Rohit, Kohli, and Jadeja were part of the Indian team that lost to Australia in the 2023 World Cup final. It is unclear if they want to play ODIs till the 2027 World Cup, particularly if they win the Champions Trophy in 2025.
Rahul Dravid left behind a fantastic legacy: Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra observed that Gautam Gambhir will also need to uphold and continue the magnificent legacy that Rahul Dravid left behind. He also outlined some of the difficulties Gambhir may face in the future.
“You have to take a huge legacy forward. India have reached the final of the last three ICC events – the WTC final, the 50-over World Cup, and have lifted the trophy in the T20 World Cup final. So Dravid has left behind a fantastic legacy because of the job he did. Rohit Sharma also wrote a huge post about that legacy. Maintaining and taking the legacy forward will be a challenging task.
You feel that India have to progress from here. We haven’t won a series in England for a long time, so we have to win a series there. Can we retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy – that will be another big thing. You will have the Champions Trophy, then the T20 World Cup, and the WTC final in between. There are three ICC events in the next two years and you expect to win at least two,” Chopra observed.
Chopra noted that Gambhir’s uncompromising style of coaching is appropriate for the under-19 team, but it’s unclear if it will translate to the senior squad.
Also Read: Hardik Pandya To Lead India In T20Is After Rohit Sharma’s Retirement