BCCI has been lining up Gautam Gambhir as the next Indian Cricket Team Coach. The position of a new coach will be implemented after Rahul Dravid bids adieu. With T20 World Cup 2024, Rahul’s tenure will end as a head coach and Gambhir will be most probably the replacement.
Amidst unassured rumors, sources close to BCCI assures Gambhir is almost confirmed for the job position. An interview is scheduled between former cricketer Gautam Gambhir and BCCI secretary Jay Shah and other officials for the men’s cricket team head coach position in Mumbai.
“Gauti (Gautam Gambhir) will be travelling today to Mumbai around 12 pm for the interview at BCCI Headquarters. It is almost confirmed that he is going to be the next head coach as the BCCI has agreed to the terms he presented for the head coach. The new head coach of the men’s cricket team will soon be revealed. The meeting is scheduled between 2-4 pm.”
The deadline for applying for the position was May 27. Nonetheless, speculations about Gambhir being approached for the position grew stronger even after the deadline.
According to the job description, the next India men’s head coach will be mentoring all the three formats from July 2024 till December 2027.
Gautam Gambhir’s Demands As India’s Head Coach
Gautam Gambhir led Kolkata Knight Riders to their third Indian Premier League title this year, his first as a mentor. He is under contract with KKR, which means BCCI will have to pay a compensation to the IPL franchise to acquire his services.
Talking about the Indian coaching role, Gambhir is reported to have demanded a full command of the team’s affairs and separate teams for white-ball and red-ball. He also demands command over selection of support staff. Currently support staff includes; Vikram Rathour as batting coach, Paras Mhambrey as bowling coach and T Dilip as fielding coach.
It is also rumored that he wants to replace four senior players Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami ,if they don’t perform in the upcoming Champions trophy 2025 to be played in Pakistan.
Earlier Gambhir expressed his interest in the coaching role saying that, “there is no bigger honour than coaching the national team. I would love to coach the Indian team. There is no bigger honour than coaching your national team. You are representing 140 crore Indians and those across the globe as well.”
It is very likely Gautam Gambhir will be taking charge as new head coach of team India, post Rahul Dravid tenure.
Tabinda Mir is a writer from Kashmir. She is an English Honours graduate and her interests primarily dwell in poetry and sports writing. She likes to cover Cricket as an avid fan. Apart from sports, her other publications include articles, poems and a letter to summer in the book titled, “Under The Summer Skies”.
Also, her leisure time activities include reading novels, poetry, non literary works, philosophies and writing poetry, short stories, articles on diverse themes.
