BCCI official confirms Gautam Gambhir’s sacking on cards, exposes behind-the-scenes tensions

India National Cricket Team head coach Gautam Gambhir has come under massive scanner after the team's poor performance in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Things are not looking good inside the dressing room with the head coach at the helm of things.

As per the reports in PTI, it is learned that head coach Gautam Gambhir and senior players of the team aren't on the same page. This has disrupted things in the dressing room as players believe that communication isn't as good as it used to be during the time of Ravi Shastri and Rahul Dravid.

Players have not shown a lot of confidence in Gautam Gambhir, the head coach not in good talks with the selection committee

Captain Rohit Sharma, who is known for giving clarity to all the players by talking to them, hasn't done the same ever since Gambhir took charge of the team in July. The skipper reportedly hasn't given clarity to some of the not-so-junior players about why they were being excluded at times from the side.

It is learned that players who are junior to Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli but senior to rookies like Harshit Rana or Nitish Reddy have not shown a lot of confidence in Gambhir. It is also reported that the position of the head coach with the selection committee isn't great either.

Gautam Gambhir has made some players insecure because of the experiments with playing XI

Gambhir reportedly has made some players insecure because of the experiments with playing XI. While his best to include Nitish Kumar Reddy worked, the handling of young batter Shubman Gill has been extremely debatable after he was snubbed from the team for the Melbourne Test.

A source close to the BCCI said that with the Sydney Test around the corner and the Champions Trophy too there, if the team's performance doesn't improve, then Gautam Gambhir's position wouldn't be safe.

If the performance doesn't improve, even Gautam Gambhir's position wouldn't be safe - BCCI official

A BCCI official made a bold claim that Gambhir wasn't the first choice for the team's head coach as the board wanted VVS Laxman to take the role. While calling the current head coach a compromise, he explained:

"There is a Test match to be played and then there is Champions Trophy. If the performance doesn't improve, even Gautam Gambhir's position wouldn't be safe,"

"He was never BCCI's first choice (it was VVS Laxman) and some of the well-known overseas names didn't want to coach all three formats, so he was a compromise. Obviously, some other compulsions were also there."

India National Cricket Team are behind by the margin of 2-1 in the series. They won the first game in Perth and then lost in Adelaide before the draw unfolded in Gabba. The last match at Melbourne saw Australia winning the game by the margin of 184 runs. The next match will be played from 3rd January in Sydney.

Also read: Mitchell Starc sent for urgent scans just days before SCG Test in a blow for Australia