Gary Kirsten joins Gautam Gambhir in war against ‘superstar culture’ after becoming Sri Lanka coach

Gary Kirsten, the newly appointed head coach of the Sri Lanka National Cricket Team, was highly impressed and backed the philosophy of the India National Cricket Team head coach Gautam Gambhir about ending the “superstar culture” inside teams.

Gambhir has always been vocal about the team culture, and now he has the strong backing of his former head coach, who helped India win the 2011 ODI World Cup at home. His philosophy gained more attention after the transformation of the Indian cricket team in T20I cricket.

Gautam Gambhir brings big cultural changes in Indian cricket

After the retirement of two of India’s biggest icons, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, following the T20 World Cup 2024, many believed the teams would struggle. But the young group surprised everyone by defending the title at the T20 World Cup 2026 under the leadership of Suryakumar Yadav and Gambhir and becoming the first team to win the tournament three times.

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Since becoming India’s head coach after Rahul Dravid, Gambhir has pushed strongly for a team-first culture. Several changes were introduced after India’s defeat in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 in Australia. The Indian head coach has shifted the focus towards discipline, equal responsibility, and reducing the influence of individual star power in the dressing room.

He's absolutely spot on: Gary Kirsten backs Gautam Gambhir's philosophy

Now, after taking up the new job with the Islanders, Gary Kirsten believes that modern Indian cricket has enough talent and depth to move away from depending on a few big players. The legendary South African cricketer has stressed that the system now produces so many quality cricketers that the team does not have to rely on only two or three superstars anymore.

Gary Kirsten was quoted as saying by Wisden Cricket, "I think he's absolutely spot on. I think India was driven largely around that superstardom status of each individual, and I think there was a massive commercial entity to that as well. I think IPL has brought on a different dynamic there. I mean, when I was with the Namibians (as a consultant in the T20 World Cup 2026), we were down at the Center of Excellence in Bengaluru, and it is the most impressive cricket facility I have seen anywhere.”

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Gary Kirsten praises India’s incredible bench strength

Gary Kirsten hailed India’s depth that was clearly visible during a warm-up clash before the T20 World Cup 2026 clash. An India A side led by Ayush Badoni dominated the Namibia National Cricket Team in Bengaluru. India A piled up a big total close to 200 runs, thanks to a brilliant fifty from Riyan Parag.

Naman Dhir and Ashutosh Sharma also made valuable contributions. In reply, Namibia collapsed and was bowled out cheaply for just 60 runs, showing the massive difference in depth between the two sides.

Kirsten further added, “We played against an India A regional team (during the T20 World Cup 2026 warm-ups), which had IPL players in it, but we got bowled out for 60 maybe, and there is just so much depth in the system in India. So, it makes complete sense that the whole game resting on two or three individuals is not necessary anymore.”