There was considerable speculation regarding the composition of the coaching staff following the public announcement by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) appointing Gautam Gambhir as the head coach. This follows the transition from Rahul Dravid, whose tenure culminated with the T20 World Cup 2024 victory, marking his first title and ending his term on a notably successful note.
Alongside Rahul Dravid, the contracts of his other staff members—batting coach Vikram Rathour, bowling coach Paras Mhambrey, and fielding coach T Dilip—also came to an end. It was widely anticipated that Gambhir would assert his own choices regarding personnel.
Previous reports suggested his interest in recruiting former Netherlands cricketer Ryan ten Doeschate, who played under Gautam Gambhir for five years at the Kolkata Knight Riders and served as the fielding coach during Gambhir’s return to the franchise in their title-winning IPL 2024 campaign as a mentor.
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However, according to a recent report from the Hindustan Times, these plans were thwarted as the BCCI dismissed Gautam Gambhir’s preferences, citing their preference for an all-Indian coaching staff. It has also been reported that Gambhir requested Jonty Rhodes as fielding coach, but this request was also declined by the board.
Gautam Gambhir Wants this coaching staff of Team India: (Cricbuzz)
Assistant Coach – Abhishek Nayar.
Bowling Coach – Morne Morkel.
In Coaching role – Ryan ten Doeschate. pic.twitter.com/a4bA1jCQPZ— Tanuj Singh (@ImTanujSingh) July 12, 2024
Gautam Gambhir’s path to assuming the role of head coach for the Indian team included mentoring roles in the IPL, despite his limited prior coaching experience. Similar trajectories were observed for Ravi Shastri and Anil Kumble when they ascended to the top coaching positions in the Indian team.
Under Gautam Gambhir’s guidance, the Lucknow Super Giants achieved playoff berths in consecutive seasons. He subsequently transitioned to mentoring the Kolkata Knight Riders, the team he previously captained to two IPL titles, leading them to another championship victory in May 2024.
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Gautam Gambhir’s inaugural assignment with Team India will commence with the tour to Sri Lanka scheduled for late July, featuring a series of three T20Is followed by an equal number of ODIs. This tour will mark the beginning of a new chapter in Indian cricket, with Gambhir at the helm, aiming to build on the foundation laid by his predecessors and take the team to greater heights.
