Gautam Gambhir better than Ravi Shastri, Rahul Dravid? The captain of the conquerors of the World Cup renounced the verdict of ‘temperamental person’
India head coach Gautam Gambhir has faced criticism from all quarters after the team’s poor performance in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Gambhir’s methods of leading the team and selecting players have come under scrutiny.
Recently, the legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev also supported him. Kapil believes that it is the responsibility of the captain and the team to perform well on the field, and the coach does not have a big role to play in that.
The former Indian all-rounder also compared Gambhir’s modus operandi to that of Ravi Shastri and Rahul Dravid. He believes that every coach has his own way of working, which he tries to implement during his tenure.
Also read: Shubman Gill has been dropped from the race to replace Rohit Sharma as India’s captain
Kapil Dev defends Gautam Gambhir
While speaking to Gulf News, Kapil Dev opened up about Gautam Gambhir’s tenure as India’s head coach so far. Kapil believes that the coaches are not in favor of what happens on the field because the captain and the team are the most involved in it.
“Expectations are high. The coaches are not on the field, but the captain and the team are on the field. The new coach will come out with his ideas and hope that it will serve the country better. If not, then people will raise their finger,” Kapil pointed out.
India’s performance in the Test series against Australia was far from satisfactory. The batsmen failed against Australia’s world-class bowling attack, while the bowlers looked inexperienced apart from Jasprit Bumrah, who was the leading wicket-taker in the series.
Kapil Dev compares Gautam Gambhir with Rahul Dravid, Ravi Shastri
Kapil Dev further compared Gautam Gambhir’s coaching style with the methods of former Indian coaches Ravi Shastri and Rahul Dravid. Kapil feels that Gambhir is a temperamental person and deals with certain things in his own way.
“(Gautam) Gambhir is a bit of a temperamental person. He is different from Ravi Shastri and Rahul Dravid. Every coach has his own mindset, so let’s hope he does better for the country,” Kapil added.
Ravi Shastri is known as a great motivator and India has reached several heights under his tenure. With Shastri as head coach, India won two Test series in Australia, no mean feat.
Meanwhile, Rahul Dravid is a man who likes to take matters into his stride. Dravid liked to keep things under control and followed a process to lead the team. In his tenure, India won the 2024 T20 World Cup and also finished as runners-up in the 2023 ODI World Cup.
Gautam Gambhir’s tenure so far
Gautam Gambhir’s tenure as India’s chief coach has not been smooth sailing so far. The men in blue lost the ODI series in Sri Lanka after a gap of 27 years. A few months ago, India lost the Test series against New Zealand by 0-3.
It was India’s first Test series defeat at home in 12 years and ended an incredible streak. After the series against New Zealand, India lost to Australia in the away Test series even after winning the first Test.
