India skipper Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from his Test career and left everyone shocked. Soon after,  star India batter Virat Kohli also called times on Tests. Moreover, veteran all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin also announced his Test retirement during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia in December 2024. And, India will be a rather inexperienced side this time under the head coach Gautam Gambhir. And, former India cricketer, Atul Wassan, has shared his views on the transition phase in the team.

“It happens because a new coach is usually appointed when the team loses something. Nobody wants to fix something that is not broken. So when that new phase arrives and you think you want to rebuild…but then there is a lack of patience. You need to keep in mind that there are big players who might think that their rules are getting disrupted,” said Wassan on the OTTPlay App.

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“They are very powerful in the Indian team. You know what happened. They won’t let it happen. So you can do it like Gary Kirsten and John Wright, who made that transition smoothly. ‘Saam Daam Dand Bhed (persuasion, reward, punishment, and divide)’ you should know it all, if you want to survive in Indian cricket,” he further added.

Atul Wassan further said that to achieve the desired results, the BCCI should give a free-hand to the head coach Gautam Gambhir.

“Whichever coach comes, comes with the dogma. You have to give him a free hand. If you’re a very strong personality, you’re given a free hand. And if you don’t deliver, you have to be out. It’s not as if you make all your choices, but in the end, you cannot guarantee results. There has to be some balance, some kind of mentorship has to be there from the board,” Atul Wassan concluded.