Gautam Gambhir and WV Raman can work together for Team India after impressing CAC during interview: Report

Gautam Gambhir and WV Raman could both be a part of India's backroom staff, according to reports. The BCCI's Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) recently interviewed both former cricketers for the post of India's new head coach.

The BCCI is set to announce the new head coach soon as Rahul Dravid's tenure comes to an end this month after India's campaign in the ongoing T20 World Cup comes to an end. Gambhir's name has been doing the round for quite some time now and he is still the front-runner to replace Dravid. However, Raman has also entered the fray and has reportedly made a good impression during the interview.

According to a report in CricketNext, Raman's impressive CV as a coach and his presentation during the interview were very thorough and impressive. The report further stated that even though Gambhir remains the favorite to become the new head coach, Raman could well be in the mix as well.

Gautam Gambhir and WV Raman to work together?

Gautam Gambhir and WV Raman are not new to working together. In 2013, Gambhir had sought Raman’s help to regain his form and had worked with him. Later, Raman had joined Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014 as a batting coach when Gambhir was leading the team. KKR had gone on to win the tournament that year.

"The Indian cricket board must look at utilising the services of both Raman and Gambhir. There are numerous ways in which one can do that – say have Gambhir as head coach and Raman as batting coach or allow Raman to have more say in red ball. Lot of ways one can use them because both can benefit Indian cricket and that’s what one should look at," a source, who is tracking the developments, told the news outlet.

Unlike Gambhir, Raman has had numerous coaching stints so far. While neither of the two have coached any men's national team so far, Raman has experience of coaching state teams. Raman was also the head coach of India's women's team from 2018 to 2021. On the other hand, Gambhir has only plied his trade as a mentor for IPL teams for the last three years.

"Raman has seen these youngsters grow from close quarters when he filled in as coach during different U-19 and A series. He can be your right guy to handhold these players as the side is set to undergo a massive transition in the next couple of years. That is likely to begin in T20s after the World Cup and ODIs, Tests will witness that too in next 12-15 months," the source added.

With both Gambhir and Raman making a good impression in the interview, the ball is now in CAC's court. They will be recommending the candidate for the coach's post to the BCCI soon.