BTN News: A known name in Indian cricket, Gautam Gambhir has moved ahead to likely become the head coach of the Indian men’s team. The former cricketer recently put his hat in the ring and auditioned before the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), a three-member panel appointed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to pick the new head coach. Gambhir has been taking significant coaching roles in the IPL, while also expressing his desire to captain the national team.
Application and Interview Process: Reports are doing the rounds that Gautam Gambhir, who is a strategic genius on the field as well, has reportedly applied for the role of the head coach. He faced an intense interview session with the CAC — consisting of former cricketers like Ashok Malhotra, Jatin Paranjape, Sulakshana Naik. While no exact number has been provided yet, the BCCI will be evaluating multiple aspirants to fill its GM role after calling applications by May 27.
Coaching Stints And Ambitions: Gambhir has led KKR to their second and third IPL titles and as a coach has worked with a few IPL franchises. The Lucknow Super Giants being one of the teams that he coached for a while and under his tutelage the side kept making the playoffs more often than not. Gambhir publicly expressed his desire to coach the Indian team, citing the pride and burden of representing the nation at an international level.
Previous Front-runners And Transition: The transition in coaching leadership follows the extension of Rahul Dravid’s tenure, which was initiated after the T20 World Cup. VVS Laxman, who was earlier in the running, has declined the role to concentrate on his academic job as the director of cricket at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. Gambhir quickly rose to the top of the pile after Laxman declined the offer, on account of his illustrious playing career and coaching success.
Future Prospects And BCCI’s Bench: BCCI has laid down an entire tenure for the new head coach, which is to be of 3.5 years, starting from July 2024. The news is huge for Indian cricket as it will see the coaches for the entire team in all formats being in charge together, a significant stage in the strategic development of Indian cricket and its competitive aspirations.
Conclusion: As the BCCI looks towards choosing the next head coach for the team, they have a credible and experienced person in Gautam Gambhir with a vision. His passage from celebrated player to a possible mentor is as much a measure of his dedication to enhance India’s status in world cricket. Its ruling, expected in the next few weeks, has far-reaching consequences for the direction of the national team.