Former Indian opener and 2024 IPL winning team, Kolkata knight Riders (KKR) mentor, Gautam Gambhir has been the hottest prospect to take over as the new head coach of the Indian cricket team. Rahul Dravid will be stepping down as the head coach of India following India’s T20 World Cup campaign in the United States and the West Indies.
The BCCI had released an invitation to apply for the head coach position earlier in May. Despite some big names like VVS Laxman, Justin Langer and Mahela Jayawardene, Gambhir has emerged as the leading candidate to take over the reins from Dravid. KKR’s IPL triumph simply makes Gambhir’s case even stronger.
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Amidst all the increasing probability of Gambhir’s appointment as the new coach, the former cricketer himself was asked about his feelings if he gets the opportunity to coach the Indian team by a young sport enthusiast from the Medeor Hospital in Abu Dhabi.
In today’s story, The Sporting News covers what Gambhir had to say when questioned about the possibility of him taking over as the new coach in near future.
What did Gambhir say when asked about taking over as the head coach of India?
Answering the kid’s question, Gambhir stated that it would be the highest of honors to represent India as the new coach of the team. The KKR mentor seemed confident about the possible opportunity.
I would love to coach the Indian team. There is no bigger honour than coaching your national team. You are representing 140 crore Indians and more across the globe as well and when you represent India, how can it get bigger than that? It is not me that will help India win the World Cup, it is 140 crore Indians who will help India win the World Cup. If everyone starts praying for us and we start playing and representing them, India will win the World Cup. The most important thing is to be fearless.
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Robin Uthappa praises Gambhir’ leadership
Gambhir has been often hailed by players for his calm demeanor in the dressing room. Former Indian player, Robin Uthappa even stated Gambhir's leadership when he was the captain of KKR team back in the days to that of MS Dhoni on a podcast with Ranveer Allahbadia a few weeks ago.
Gauti (Gautam Gambhir) is a very similar captain, genuinely. These are captains who are always one or two over ahead of the game when they are leading on the field. So I would say Gauti and Mahi (MS Dhoni) for me are two very similar captains.
Uthappa had also played under Dhoni during his Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as well as the Indian team.
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