Gautam Gambhir as the new India team head coach is refreshing for everyone, opined Ravi Shastri. Gambhir took over in the position from Rahul Dravid, whose tenure ended after the T20 World Cup 2024 win.
Dravid declined to extend his contract or reapply for the head coach role and then the BCCI appointed Gautam Gambhir as the new India head coach across formats. Gambhir came after guiding Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL 2024 glory as well.
Gautam Gambhir begins his reign as head coach of the Indian squad on Saturday when the Suryakumar Yadav-led side faces Sri Lanka in the opening T20I of a three-match series.
Since then, much has been said and written about Gambhir’s appointment and what he brings. Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has expressed his thoughts on Gambhir’s appointment. Shastri handed over the mantle to Dravid following the conclusion of the T20 World Cup in 2021.
Ravi Shastri feels that a young coach like Gambhir will bring a fresh approach to this Indian side.
“He’s contemporary, he just had a great season in the IPL. I think he’s the right age where he’s young, he’ll come with fresh ideas. He knows most of the players, especially in the white-ball format, having been part of teams in the IPL. So I think it’s refreshing.
And we know with Gautam, he’s a no-nonsense guy. He’ll have his ideas as well. And the good thing for him is he’s got a mature team. He’s got a settled team, a mature team. I think even though you might think you’re mature, you might benefit from some fresh ideas. So I think it’ll be interesting times. Obviously, player management becomes the key as a coach. So it’ll be interesting to see how he goes. I think he’s got the tools, he’s got the goods for the job and he’s got the experience,” Shastri said on ICC Review.
While Gambhir has not had any coaching experience in the IPL, he did work as a mentor with several franchises and masterminded KKR’s title-winning campaign earlier this year.
Gautam Gambhir’s main task will be man management and understanding his players- Ravi Shastri
Gambhir takes over in all formats following an IPL victory with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) – he was the team mentor. He was credited with rallying the players, reintroducing Sunil Narine to the bat, and boosting the confidence of newcomer Harshit Rana, among other things. With the Indian team, he will be responsible for guiding both youth and senior players across forms.
Shastri said Gambhir’s “most important task” will be to understand his players as people and their “temperaments”.
“It’s a question of just understanding his players as quickly as possible. What their strengths are, what kind of human beings they are and what kind of temperaments do they have? What are their personalities? A lot goes behind the scenes to understand a human being.
I think that will be his most important task, which I think again should not be a problem because he’s contemporary. He’s seen these guys from the outside, he’s dealt with a lot of guys who might have played with KKR as well and for Lucknow (Super Giants) when he was there,” Shastri said.
Also Read: Rahul Dravid Thought Of Suryakumar Yadav As India T20I Captain Before Gautam Gambhir- Paras Mhambrey