A new era began for Team India in July this year as Gautam Gambhir took the reins as the head coach of the senior men’s team following the departure of Rahul Dravid. Dravid’s tenure ended on a high note, with India clinching the T20 World Cup, leaving Gambhir with the daunting task of keeping the standards intact. The pressure remains undoubtedly high, not just on Gambhir but also on his support staff, to ensure that India remain at the pinnacle of world cricket.
Gambhir’s coaching journey started on a positive note with a dominant 3-0 sweep over Sri Lanka in the T20I series, marking the beginning of a new era under the leadership of Suryakumar Yadav in the shortest format. However, the subsequent ODI series proved to be a tougher challenge, as India faced a 0-2 setback in the three-match series. Despite the early mixed results, there is a sense of optimism and excitement surrounding Gambhir’s tenure.
Rishabh Pant, India’s dynamic wicketkeeper-batter, who was part of the Sri Lanka tour, recently shared his insights on working under Gambhir’s leadership. Speaking on JioCinema ahead of the Duleep Trophy, where he represents India B, Pant reflected on the working styles of both, Dravid and Gambhir; the wicketkeeper-batter shares a close bond with Gambhir, both during their time at Delhi Capitals and in their state team.
While Pant praised Dravid for his balanced and composed approach, he stated that Gambhir has an aggressive mindset.
“I feel Rahul bhai was very balanced as a human being and as a coach. It could be both good and bad. There are positives and negatives, and it depends on where individuals want to focus. Gauti bhai (Gambhir) is more aggressive, he’s very one-sided about the fact that you have to win. But you need to find the right balance and improve,” Pant said.
India return to action later this month
Team India will return to Test action later in September when it hosts the high-flying Bangladesh in a two-Test series. Bangladesh recently registered a historic 2-0 Test series win over Pakistan away.
Pant is nearly assured of making his return to the Test squad for the upcoming series. It will, however, be interesting to see if Dhruv Jurel, who kept wickets during India’s previous Test series in England and delivered impressive performances with the bat, will retain his spot in the side.
