Andy Flower, Venkatesh Iyer and Vijay Dahiya, who have worked with the new India coach before, tell us about his potential approach
Nagraj Gollapudi29-Jul-2024Andy Flower considers the question: Is Gautam Gambhir a coach?Many have voiced or thought it since it became clear Gambhir was to take over as the India men’s team’s head coach from Rahul Dravid, whose extended tenure finished with the T20 World Cup in June.Gambhir has never held a formal coaching designation in his time as part of the back-room staff at the two IPL franchises he has worked at since retiring from playing cricket in 2018. At Lucknow Super Giants he was the mentor for two seasons, 2022 and 2023, a role he also performed at Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024, when they won the title.Related
Coaching? It's all about the vibes, man
Wobbly SL look for respite against red-hot India
Firebrand and team man: What to expect from Gambhir as India's new coach?
'Trust, freedom, success' – Gambhir lays out his coaching philosophy
Gambhir on working with Kohli: 'We are going to be on the same page'
He has likely never performed some of the basic jobs coaches normally carry out: being directly involved in planning the structure of training sessions, giving throwdowns, making adjustments to the techniques of players, and so on.Flower has been hands-on with these aspects since he moved into a highly successful coaching career that has now lasted about two decades, during which he has been head coach at England and at several domestic T20 league sides, including currently Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL and Southern Brave in the Hundred.He understands Gambhir’s strengths on the coaching bench, having been head coach at Super Giants during Gambhir’s two seasons there. “He’s certainly got some of the characteristics of a successful coach,” he says. “He hasn’t really coached, though, has he? He is not your conventional coach.” Flower does think Gambhir has some of the key qualities necessary to succeed in his new role.”It would probably be better to describe him as an inspirational leader than a coach. That might be more accurate. He’s a guy that has the conviction and courage of his own beliefs and principles that will allow other people to really want to follow him.Andy Flower with Gautam Gambhir ahead of an IPL game in 2023. “If you are in a debate and you are negotiating for a decision, you have to have a really good argument to change his mind,” Flower says•BCCI”Followers or teams like to trust that their leader has the courage of his convictions. And GG definitely has that. He has strong opinions. He knows where he wants to go. He’s willing to make tough decisions, and he will have a very clear idea of the type of cricket that he wants his teams to play.”Gambhir’s contract is expected to run until the end of the 2027 ODI World Cup, which means he has more than three years for which to draw up plans. His appointment coincides with a phase of transition in Indian cricket; the selection panel, led by Ajit Agarkar, is keen to blood several young players who they hope will be ready to fill the positions that will fall vacant in the next few years when the likes of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja move on.”The biggest difference between the two jobs [franchise and international cricket],” Flower says, “is that in the international arena you are developing a team and you are developing individuals with a medium- to long-term outlook. Franchise cricket is more about short-term results and getting a bunch of disparate individuals together heading in one direction and believing in something in a very short space of time.”Whereas in international cricket you have just more time for individual development and to develop a deeper culture in the group. [Gambhir] will be doing three formats, so those might differ a little. They might have different captains, for instance, different senior players, but the tenets and principles of the culture and the unit that you are developing across three formats will be similar.”
****
Intense, passionate, in-your-face – these are qualities we have come to associate with Gambhir as a person, player, commentator, and as a mentor on the IPL circuit.Venkatesh Iyer, the India and KKR allrounder, provides an example of how Gambhir does not pull punches in delivering home truths.It happened minutes after Punjab Kings had recorded the biggest successful chase in T20 cricket, reaching the 262-run target set by Knight Riders at Eden Gardens in this year’s IPL.Love, Kolkata: Gambhir’s name is written in legend at KKR for his contributions as player and coach•Getty Images”We were all in shock, but what he told us was absolute truth,” Iyer says. “He told us that we didn’t bowl and we didn’t stick to our plans. The meeting we had that day was revolutionary because after that meeting, it’s our bowling that won us all the games in the IPL. That is a day that every KKR player remembers because that’s when things started to turn around for us.”Iyer, who has been a key player for Knight Riders in the past few years, also brings up the match against Delhi Capitals in early April where he batted at No. 7.”I remember the game against RCB where I got a half-century [from No. 3], and in the next game I got to bat only one [two] balls against Delhi. I remember him coming and talking to me about how it feels when you are doing well and still not getting to bat.”For a mentor to come and talk to me like that means a lot. And also before the season, the way he spoke to me, the way he handled me – because I did not score a lot in the practice games, but he still gave me the confidence to go out there and express myself in the tournament.”Iyer says Gambhir stands out among the mentors and coaches he has had in his career because he understands when he needs to push a player and when to show empathy. “The biggest quality of GG sir is his passion and his unparalleled dedication towards the task in hand,” he says. “There’s an aura right there, which kind of makes you place the team ahead of you, and that’s his biggest quality.”Former India and Delhi wicketkeeper Vijay Dahiya has known Gambhir for more than two decades, having captained him and also played under him at Delhi, and then worked as an assistant coach on the IPL circuit: initially at Knight Riders when Gambhir was captain, and then at Super Giants for two seasons.Dahiya says that Gambhir, having played with and against several Indian players, including at the IPL, and having experience of being a match-winner and leader, ought not to face any barriers of communication in the India job. “Been-there-done-that makes a lot of difference. His chats with individuals make a lot of impact with players who understand his thinking.”Gambhir will need to build strong relationships with his captains, and handle the big names in his squads sensitively. Suryakumar Yadav falls into both categories•AFP/Getty ImagesBoth Dahiya and Flower say that Gambhir will not shy away from having tough debates on various topics, including selection, and while he is a good listener, he will not yield if he believes what he thinks will benefit the team.”He does have very strong opinions, and he can be very black and white about certain things,” Flower says. “That’s widely understood about him. But he is a smart guy. And that’s why I say, if you are in a debate and you are negotiating for a decision, you have to have a really good argument to change his mind. He’s not a man that is incapable of changing his mind or listening. He does actually listen. He might not have that reputation, but he does [listen].”A standout quality in Gambhir’s success as a leader – as captain and mentor – has been his ability to be calm on the field or in the dugout while making strategic calls. “He is usually in an influential position, so you have to be aware of how you are coming across,” Flower says. “What message are people hearing when you speak, what are they seeing in your body language? That is why he keeps a calm demeanour in the dugout area.”He’s fiery, there’s no doubt about that. He’s got tons of passion inside him, and he is very passionate about whichever franchise he is working for, and obviously very passionate about Indian cricket. A lot of players will like that. They will like the fact that he’ll be willing to stand up for them.”Ravi Shastri, who served as India coach over two stints, said on the ICC Review show that Gambhir’s primary task will be to understand his players and dressing room. Gambhir particularly will need to establish a strong relationship with Rohit Sharma, India’s captain in Tests and ODIs, and Suryakumar Yadav, who has been picked as T20I captain by the selectors with an eye on the 2026 T20 World Cup.One other person he needs to be on side with is Virat Kohli. The run-ins the two have had in the IPL over the last decade were a talking point in the media as soon as Gambhir was announced as the India coach.Dahiya thinks both parties will acknowledge their dependence on each other. “Because Virat wants to get better. And Gautam understands very well that to win abroad in Test cricket, especially in SENA countries, India need Virat and Rohit.”
****
Gambhir will not be overwhelmed migrating to the international role because he has played a lot of international cricket successfully and been familiar with the demands of a high-pressure environment. However, there will be challenges, the most significant of which might not be on the field of play.No hard feelings: Gambhir and Virat Kohli hug after an IPL game earlier this year•BCCIA source privy to the Indian dressing room and its workings for several years says Gambhir will need to adroitly manage the “superstars” who crowd the team. “It is not an easy task. It is not like a franchise model, where you are the boss and you can dictate terms. That won’t work here. In the India dressing room you will have to pick up the phone, speak to players, and Dravid was really good at doing that.”Even Dravid, when he joined, would have found it a challenge with the landscape of cricket having changed since he retired: everyone is a multimillionaire and is a captain of his respective franchise. So that’s Gambhir’s biggest challenge – dealing with players.”A piece of advice this person would like to offer Gambhir is that while he prides himself on being forthright, it would be wise to be tactful in his interactions with the players.It might seem Gambhir has already heard him. On his first day on the job, when he sat in on the selection meetings before the India squads were picked for the ongoing Sri Lanka series, Gambhir is understood to have spoken to Hardik Pandya about what he wanted from him, as well as agreeing with the selectors that Pandya should be available to play cricket at all times. Gambhir also didn’t force his opinions on players on the selectors, allowing Agarkar’s panel the autonomy to take the calls they needed to.Flower and Dahiya say Gambhir’s success will also depend on him trusting the support staff he has hand-picked, and his ability to empower them. While Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate, who were part of the Knight Riders coaching bench, will be Gambhir’s assistant coaches, former South Africa fast bowler Morne Morkel is expected to join as bowling coach, a role he performed at Super Giants from 2023.”He cannot do it all,” Flower says of Gambhir. “He will need his assistant coaches to complement him. As we know he is quite intense and passionate, so his assistant coaches might have to add other qualities, like the ability to get close to the players, to develop almost softer relationships with the players.” In this, Flower draws on an example from his coaching past.Face time: Gambhir chats with Hardik Pandya during the ongoing tour of Sri Lanka•Pankaj Nangia/Getty Images”I remember Mushtaq Ahmed [former England spin bowling coach] describing it to me when he said, ‘You as head coach are like the family father figure who needs to dole out discipline occasionally. We as the assistant coaches are like the mother: we can afford to be a little softer with the players. We can develop closer relationships, more empathetic relationships, with the players. And by doing so, we’ll be able to influence the players from a different perspective than you would as the father.’ I always thought that was quite a good description. And I think with GG there, that’s probably a very apt description.”
****
Lalchand Rajput was the head coach when India won the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007. Gary Kirsten was in charge when they won the 2011 ODI World Cup. Duncan Fletcher was the head coach in 2013 when they won the 2013 Champions Trophy. Under Shastri’s tenure as head coach, India won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia on successive tours. Recently Dravid helped India win the T20 World Cup. What might Gambhir’s equivalent be – if not in terms of titles, in the matter of the more intangible contributions he makes?”Everybody is talking about how he has a winner’s mentality,” Dahiya says. “So you want to see how he helps India develop a style of play, a mentality akin to what Australia had in the 1990s and 2000s – that we can win by playing a certain style of cricket no matter what situation it is. It’s time for Indian cricket to dominate.”Being an international head coach is a tough assignment. Every word and move is scrutinised and replayed in these social media-driven times. Gambhir’s patience will be tested. He will be expected to answer difficult questions, especially when his team struggles or loses. Being an all-format coach, with a coaching staff not exactly brimming with international experience (outside of Morkel, potentially, who has been Pakistan’s bowling coach), might seem an overwhelming task already.Flower has a piece of advice to offer Gambhir, which Dravid echoed over the weekend in a video the BCCI posted on social media: show the world your lighter side. “Sometimes what people don’t see with GG is that he is very capable of smiling and having a giggle,” Flower says. “I have seen that and it’s a really nice side of him. Actually, I hope he allows people to see that side of him because he has a mischievous sense of humour and he needs to allow that to come out.”Managing his energy and freshness and enthusiasm on a very, very busy international circuit, and under the scrutiny the Indian coach will come [under], he should be very conscious about how he does that. I would say: pay attention to that, GG.