Air of expectancy over Gambhir as new India coach
As skipper, he was stubborn yet fair and team-focused but bonding with players will be vital now, say former teammates
In the fortnight since Gautam Gambhir was confirmed as the new India men’s cricket team head coach, the former opening batter has set a marker about wanting to do things his way. The decision to elevate Suryakumar Yadav as the T20I captain, rather than Hardik Pandya who was vice-captain in India’s triumphant T20 World Cup campaign, has his imprint. He has also veered from recent convention by bringing in a foreigner, Ryan ten Doeschate of Netherlands, as an assistant coach. His choice for bowling coach, it is believed, is South African Morne Morkel.
This is not at all surprising once you delve deeper into Gambhir’s personality by talking to his former teammates and ex-selectors, for the picture they paint is of a fiercely passionate individual who backs those he believes in all the way. It doesn’t matter if he has to go against stalwarts like Bishan Singh Bedi and Chetan Chauhan, like he did in pushing for pacer Navdeep Saini, once content with starring in tennis-ball matches, to play for Delhi amid opposition over a decade ago. Saini, who belongs to Karnal, Haryana, went on to play for India in all formats.
“I had never thought I could play (at this level), because I wasn’t going to any academy. When Gautam bhaiya saw me, he thought ladke mein dum hai aur talent hai (the boy has courage and talent). Everything he did for me. I wasn’t playing proper cricket back then. I have now played in the Ranji Trophy, IPL and for the Indian team. Whatever I’m playing today, it is because of him,” Saini, who has played two Tests, eight ODIs and 11 T20Is, said with a sense of gratitude.
In former India pacer Vivek Razdan’s view, Gambhir was always thoroughly prepared for his meetings with the selectors. Razdan, 54, served as Delhi selector when Gambhir led the team to their last Ranji Trophy title in the 2007/08 season.
“When he was captain, I always found him to be very sincere and focused,” said Razdan. “He would attend meetings as a captain always with a plan in mind. It was never as if he just walked into a meeting and generally talked about things here and there. I remember when Gautam was captain in the 2007-08 season, we got Sumit Narwal into the team on his recommendation and Delhi went on to win the Ranji that season. That was also the case later with Saini. He had not played any cricket at all. There was a lot of resistance, but Gambhir stuck to his demand and to what he was looking for.”
More importantly, said Razdan, Gambhir believed in giving players enough chances to prove their mettle. “Gautam always had that knack of picking the right player at the right time, and always backing him. The more important thing is once you have made a choice, you have got to back him. That is something I always saw in him.”
Gambhir sticking to his opinion can be a double-edged sword; there is always a thin line between confidence and stubbornness to acknowledge the views of others. But Razdan found Gambhir to be reasonable in these matters. “You had to prove your point,” Razdan offered. “Just because you are a senior cricketer or selector telling him something, he won’t do it. He wants to put his side and he wants to listen to your side. We had an issue with the incumbent wicketkeeper during one of those seasons. There was a guy from age-group level who was coming up as a wicketkeeper and it took us some time to convince him. He finally agreed to it.”
According to Rajat Bhatia, who played under Gambhir’s captaincy at state level as well as for Delhi Daredevils and Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL, the biggest challenge for his former teammate would be his equation with India’s senior players. It’s common knowledge that Gambhir, 42, has had his run-ins with Virat Kohli in the past.
“Becoming the coach of the Indian team is a challenge for Gautam. The standard has been set with India now winning the T20 World Cup. Whether his appointment is a very good thing for Indian cricket, I’m not too sure. We have seen how his relationship with Virat has been and with other senior players as well. He has to manage that. If he is looking forward to this job, the relationship with players is very important. Players cannot be made to feel uncomfortable. Leading a team as captain is different, but once you become the coach, how you make the players feel is very important,” said Bhatia.
As captain, felt Bhatia, Gambhir took time to grow into his role. “As a captain, he slowly became very mature,” said the former all-rounder. “It was not that he had the ability right from the beginning. When he was leading Delhi Daredevils at the start, I did not find him to be a good captain. But when he moved to KKR, he would consult other people but take his own decisions. Taking decisions is something that a good captain and coach should know how to take. He slowly got better with that ability. I hope that continues.”
Other facets evident during Gambhir’s playing career were his selflessness and ability to treat everyone alike. “Whenever Gautam bhai used to play for Delhi, he never played for his runs,” said former India and Delhi pacer Parvinder Awana. “He would choose the wicket with the team’s interests in mind. His intention was always that there should be a positive result rather than a draw. So, we used to play on turning tracks at Kotla and on green tracks at Roshanara.”
As Razdan recalled, Gambhir would also give no leeway to the senior players in the Delhi team as captain. “One thing that I really appreciated about him is that the rules were the same for everyone,” he said. “Back then, the rule for a young Ishant Sharma or Pradeep Sangwan would be the same as the rule for Virender Sehwag. So, when it comes to discipline and some of the other things, it was the same for all.”
As India head to Sri Lanka for a white-ball series beginning July 27, you expect the poker-faced Gambhir to mould himself to a certain degree simply because the dynamics as a head coach are different. But to what extent, only time will tell.
