Gautam Gambhir responded to questions varying from his coaching style and philosophy at his maiden press conference as the new Chief Coach of the senior Indian men's cricket team. Gambhir, known for his aggressive demeanor on and off the field, said it was a pretty simple strategy and building a positive team environment.
“My approach is pretty simple. I think important is to give players freedom. I think that’s what I absolutely believe in and not having a relationship which is of a head coach and a player. I think for me, the best relationship is a relationship which is built on trust and that is going to be very important. I can promise guys that I think the most important thing for me is that they will always have my back.
“And I’ve always said that a happy dressing room is a very interesting, happy and secure dressing room. So that’s my responsibility alongside the entire support staff to make it a happy and secure dressing room. And that’s one thing to me,” said Gambhir on Monday.
“I don’t want to complicate things because one thing we need to be clear is that I think I’m taking over a very, very successful team. The T20 World Champion. I think runner-up in the World Test Championship and runner-up in the 50-over World Cup. So, it’s not that it’s not a successful team. So yes, I think it’s big shoes to fill, but then looking forward to it,” Gambhir added.
He spoke about his coaching philosophy across formats: consistency in team composition is very important, and workload management is essential for the bowlers. He pointed to the intensity of the upcoming schedule as a huge challenge but said he feels excited about the prospects of the team in Tests.
“It’s always been a challenge because when you take over in all the three formats. More importantly, after the Sri Lanka tour, we got a long break, we got a month break and then we got ten Test matches. I think that’s not bad because, after the home series, we have the tour of Australia coming up as well. But then again, I think that’s what the challenge is all about. I am really excited about it and hopefully, we can do really well in the Test matches.
“As the chairman has already said some of the players who did miss out on this tour of Sri Lanka because there are ten Test matches and someone like Ravindra Jadeja is very important for all those ten Test matches. So yes, I am really looking forward to all those ten Test matches,” said Gambhir.
He was asked to address the speculation of the nature of his relationship with BCCI Secretary Jay Shah, and Gambhir firmly declared their long-standing rapport, dismissing any gossip about rifts. "Our relationship is solid, rooted in our mutual dedication to Indian cricket's progress," he clarified.
Gambhir spoke about his relationship with Virat Kohli, where there is mutual respect despite on-field clashes. "Our relationship is not for public scrutiny. We share a good off-field bond, focused on making India proud," he said.
Gambhir was quite optimistic about the future of senior players such as Kohli and Rohit Sharma, their contributing once again will be dependent on fitness and personal choices. He added that their case may appear in upcoming tournaments like the 2027 ODI World Cup.
The selection of the support staff, according to Gambhir, has been done provisionally pending the conclusion of the Sri Lanka tour. Gambhir expressed satisfaction over the kind of support the BCCI extended towards his team's building process.
While considering workload management, Gambhir stressed strategic rest for main players like Jasprit Bumrah, focusing on their value in big matches.
Gambhir concluded with his thanks to the BCCI for their cooperation in his choice of support staff and claimed he is pretty optimistic about the team's future under his leadership.
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