After India’s disastrous Border Gavaskar Trophy, the murmurs surrounding the Indian dressing room has refused to die down. From allegations on discipline to ‘leaks’ to calls for a total transition, Indian cricket had a roller-coaster ride since the first week of this year. There were even reports that Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir’s performance will be reviewed after the Champions Trophy 2025, starting next month. In the midst of this, came a suggestion that Indian cricket team can opt for two different coaches.
“I think so. I think that’s a good option,” Monty Panesar, who has 167 wickets in Tests and 24 wickets in ODIs for England, told Times of India.
“I think maybe the workload is too much for Gambhir…He’s just transitioned into a coach. Sometimes it can be difficult for some of the senior players who actually will be thinking, ‘Well, I was his teammate a few years ago, now he’s telling us how to play cricket’. It can be difficult, that transition, and also his record (as a batter) isn’t great in Australia or in England.”
But former BCCI chief selector Sunil Joshi has rejected any such idea.
“I personally feel there shouldn’t be any knee-jerk reactions after the BGT (result). I mean we have lost the BGT, accept it…They (Australia) played better cricket. Let’s accept it,” Joshi told Timesofindia.com.
“We should not be going the western way. We should be going our own way, what suits us, because the majority of our players are going to be there for all three formats. Very few exceptions are there who are going to feature (only) in Tests or T20s and ODIs. So it doesn’t make any difference.”
He also said that having two coaches opens up the possibility of having multiple judgements. “When you have two coaches, there’ll be two different views on how to play cricket, although you might say they are all professionals and everything. But still, there is the 1% possibility of being judgmental,” said Joshi.
“Prior to a particular series, the white-ball coach will come, then the other coach (for Tests). Then they’ll start doing different sorts of training. There are completely different dynamics when you have multiple coaches for multiple teams. That’s my view on that.”
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