Former cricketer and former Lok Sabha MP Gautam Gambhir has been officially appointed as the new head coach of the Indian cricket team. BCCI secretary Jay Shah announced this in a post on social media late on Tuesday evening. He wrote, “It is with great pleasure that I welcome Gautam Gambhir as the new head coach of the Indian cricket team. Modern cricket has evolved rapidly and Gautam has seen this changing landscape closely.” Gautam Gambhir will replace head coach Rahul Dravid. Dravid had bid farewell to Rohit Sharma and Co after winning the T20 World Cup 2024 in his previous tenure as the head coach of the Indian team. During the preparation for the T20 World Cup, Rahul had made it clear that he would not take an extension.
Jay Shah further wrote, “Having faced difficult situations in his career and performed brilliantly in different roles, I am confident that Gautam is the ideal person to take Indian cricket forward. His clear vision for Team India, combined with his vast experience makes him perfectly qualified to take over this exciting and most sought-after coaching role at BCCI. We support him in this new journey.”
After being appointed the head coach of the Indian cricket team, Gautam Gambhir posted on Instagram, “India is my identity and serving my country has been the greatest privilege of my life. I am honoured to be back, albeit wearing a different hat. But my goal remains the same as always, to make every single Indian proud. These men have the dreams of 1.4 billion Indians on their shoulders and I will do everything in my power to make these dreams come true!”
Former Indian openers Gambhir and WV Raman were interviewed by the BCCI's Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) last month for the post of head coach of the national team.
Gautam Gambhir will join the team from Sri Lanka series
Emerging as a strong contender for this high-profile job, World Cup winner Gambhir recently completed his farewell video for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). The KKR mentor played a key role in Kolkata's third title win in the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Earlier, BCCI secretary Shah had confirmed that India will get a new head coach from the white-ball series against Sri Lanka this month. Shah said, “Both the coach and the selector will be appointed soon. The CAC has shortlisted two names after conducting interviews and whatever decision they take after reaching Mumbai, we will proceed accordingly. VVS Laxman is going to Zimbabwe, but the new coach will join the Sri Lanka series.”