Gautam Gambhir named new India head coach as Jay Shah confirms him as Rahul Dravid's replacement

BCCI secretary Jay Shah, on Tuesday (July 9), confirmed Gautam Gambhir as the new head coach of Team India. The former India batsman has replaced Rahul Dravid as the head coach.

Dravid's tenure came to an end after the T20 World Cup final last month. The former India skipper was in charge of the team from 2021 till the T20 World Cup 2024. The onus will now be on Gautam Gambhir to extend Dravid's fine job as a coach across formats especially in T20s where India were crowned the world champions last month.

Gambhir was the front-runner for the post for quite some time now. He and former India cricketer WV Raman had interviewed for the post last month. While both had reportedly managed to impress the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), Gambhir was the first choice of the board from the very start.

And Jay Shah has finally confirmed him as the new head coach of the Indian team. The BCCI secretary took to X (formerly Twitter) to announce Gambhir's appointment as the head coach. Welcoming Gambhir, Shah said that the former India batsman is the ideal person to take Indian cricket forward.

"It is with immense pleasure that I welcome Mr @GautamGambhir as the new Head Coach of the Indian Cricket Team," wrote Shah.

"Modern-day cricket has evolved rapidly, and Gautam has witnessed this changing landscape up close. Having endured the grind and excelled in various roles throughout his career, I am confident that Gautam is the ideal person to steer Indian Cricket forward.

"His clear vision for #TeamIndia, coupled with his vast experience, positions him perfectly to take on this exciting and most sought-after coaching role. The @BCCI fully supports him as he embarks on this new journey," he added.

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— Jay Shah (@JayShah) J<!---->u<!---->l<!---->y<!----> <!---->9<!---->,<!----> <!---->2<!---->0<!---->2<!---->4

Gautam Gambhir's experience in coaching:

Gautam Gambhir is yet to coach a state or national team but has managed to impress one and all with his coaching in the IPL. He plied his trade as a mentor in the IPL in the last three seasons. In 2022 and 2023, he served as the mentor of the Lucknow Super Giants and helped them qualify for the playoffs in both seasons.

Incidentally, LSG failed to qualify for the playoffs this season without Gambhir in the dugout. For IPL 2024, Gambhir had joined Kolkata Knight Riders and helped them win the tournament for the first time since 2014. Gambhir's tenure as India's head coach will begin later this month with the tour of Sri Lanka.