New Delhi: Former India cricketer Ravi Shastri has backed the appointment of Gautam Gambhir as the new head coach of the Indian men’s cricket team. Shastri, who coached the Indian team from 2017 to 2021, believes it will be a refreshing start for the 2011 World Cup winner and Indian cricket are set for some interesting times.
Gambhir replaced Rahul Dravid as the Indian coach after the latter decided not to extend his tenure with the Men in Blue despite the T2o World Cup success in Barbados last month. Gambhir hasn’t experienced any coaching stint at the international level with his only roles in the domain being the mentor of Lucknow Super Giants (2022-2023) and Kolkata Knight Riders (2024).
KKR won their third IPL title after Gambhir was roped in their coaching set up in the first season itself, though under the leadership of captain Shreyas Iyer and head coach Chandrakant Pandit.
“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,” Shastri said on Gambhir’s capability as coach on the ICC Review.
“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,” the cricketer-turned-commentator added.
Gautam Gambhir’s first task to be India’s tour of Sri Lanka
Gautam Gambhir will start his new innings as the Indian coach with the Indian men’s team scheduled to travel to Sri Lanka for the upcoming white-ball series. Gambhir will have the challenge to work with two captains in Rohit Sharma for ODIs and Suryakumar Yadav for T20Is.
India will play three T20 Internationals and as many One-Day Internationals against Sri Lanka from July 27 to August 7. The three-match T20I series will commence first, starting on July 27 in Pallekele.
Gambhir replaced Rahul Dravid as the Indian coach after the latter decided not to extend his tenure with the Men in Blue despite the T2o World Cup success in Barbados last month. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
