Photo Credit: Instagram Photos of @rahuldravidofficial, @gautamgambhir55
India captain Rohit Sharma stated on Tuesday that head coach Gautam Gambhir‘s style differs from that of his predecessor Rahul Dravid, but emphasized that he has a good relationship with the new coach and the rest of the newly appointed support staff.
Gambhir, a former World Cup-winning opener, took charge of the Indian team in July during a white-ball tour of Sri Lanka and is set to lead the team in its first Test series under his guidance, starting against Bangladesh on Thursday.
In Gambhir’s debut as coach, India swept the T20I series against Sri Lanka 3-0 but lost the ODI series 0-2.
“Obviously, Rahul bhai, Vikram Rathour (former batting coach) and Paras Mhambrey (former bowling coach) were a different team and it is only acceptable that the new support staff will bring different perspective,” Rohit said in the pre-series press conference here on Tuesday.
“But the matches that we engaged in (with the new staff) in Sri Lanka, they seemed to be sensible and understanding. They began to learn things pretty quickly within the team,” he added.
Dravid’s tenure ended after India’s T20 World Cup victory in the West Indies, and he will now lead the coaching staff of IPL team Rajasthan Royals. Rathour and Mhambrey were replaced by Abhishek Nayar as assistant coach and South African Morne Morkel as bowling coach, with former Dutch all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate also joining as an assistant coach.
While Nayar’s appointment was widely expected, Morkel and ten Doeschate, both of whom worked with Gambhir at Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, were chosen over former pacers R Vinayakumar and L Balaji for roles in India’s support staff.
Rohit highlighted his long association with Gambhir from their playing days and his experience with Abhishek Nayar in the Mumbai dressing room to emphasize his comfortable working relationship with both.
“It’s a new (support) staff for sure, but I have known Gautam Gambhir and Abhishek Nayar long enough. Every support staff has its operating style, and that’s what we were expecting.
“I have worked with different coaches over 17 years of my career, and it’s vital to understand that all of them have a unique perspective (about cricket), and it’s a must that you adjust with them,” said Rohit.
Although Rohit has not previously worked with Morkel and Doeschate, he mentioned that his familiarity with them from their playing days is sufficient to establish a comfortable working relationship.
“I have also played matches against Morne Morkel and Ryan ten Doeschate. I have some close encounters with Morkel, but not so much with Ryan, maybe a couple of matches. But that doesn’t matter.
“As of now, there have been no issues or problems as such (with the new set of support staff). We have a great understanding of each other.
“Good understanding is important, and I have that with them,” he added on his dynamics with the new head coach and his team.
In his first media interaction since taking charge in July, the 42-year-old Gambhir addressed concerns about his relationship with senior players, citing his familiarity with them from his playing days.
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