Temba Bavuma, the man who brought India and Gautam Gambhir to their knees in November, has advised the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to stick with Gambhir as India’s Test coach.
Before Bavuma’s South Africa routed India, New Zealand had humiliated them a year earlier. It was a historic defeat. India was whitewashed at home in a series of at least 3 matches for the first time. The defeat led to the retirements of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin.
How Rohit Sharma & Virat Kohli’s retirement has impacted India
Bavuma thinks the trio’s absence has played a significant role in India’s wayward performance in Test cricket. With them, Gambhir has to shoulder all the pressure. He has to guide young captain Shubman Gill, manage the replacement of one of India’s greatest spinners and best batters of their generation. On top, he has to look after Jasprit Bumrah, who’s as precious as he’s injury-prone.
The South Africa captain doesn’t think India will start dominating teams all of a sudden in 2026. It’s a team in transition. You don’t have number 3 for starters. Ravindra Jadeja’s bowling hasn’t been as impressive without Ashwin. Washington Sundar will need time to settle on his feet.
“You saw how India performed in the ODI space with their two stalwarts, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, versus in the Test game, where those two weren’t available for selection. When it comes to the red-ball stuff, India are definitely a team in transition.
India coach Gautam Gambhir has a lot of pressure on his shoulders, and I think he is going to have to take it as it comes. He is going to have to find a way to buy himself time in the red-ball game, and I’m of the view that the performances in white-ball cricket may assist him.
In ODIs, Kohli and Rohit will naturally take on a lot more responsibility from a performance and leadership point of view. So I think Gambhir will be okay in terms of his position. However, from a red-ball point of view, it’s going to be tough for this Indian team in the near future,” Bavuma wrote in a column for ESPNcricinfo.
Against split coaching
In contrast to Gambhir’s Test result, he has dominated in white-ball cricket. Winning the Champions Trophy and the Asia Cup are his biggest achievements. Some have suggested removing Gambhir as India’s Test coach but sticking with him in the other two formats.
Bavuma’s against this. Having two coaches muddies the thinking. It confuses players. You get different messaging from two different coaches. That’s why teams like England, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand aren’t doing it anymore either.
‘Some may speak more to the narrative that Gambhir should perhaps carry on with the white-ball stuff and let someone else fulfil the Test cricket duties. Splitting the red- and white-ball coaching roles was something we gave a go within the Proteas set-up back in 2023.
At the time, there was sense behind the split rule. But now having one coach across all formats works a lot better for players from a continuity point of view. Moreover, it’s advantageous from a philosophy and playing style point of view. I don’t think a lot of teams are going with the split-format system anymore, and to be honest, I’m not really in favour of that rule. If anything, it just confuses the players, because in one format a certain type of language is spoken, and then in another format, a couple of weeks later, you need to adjust,” the Proteas captain further wrote.
How Gambhir should handle players
Bavuma wants Gambhir to speak straight to the players. They should be ready for disappointments. That’s what happens during a transition period. He must back the players he thinks will succeed. With time, the team will grow, and the results will come. It’s just that Gambhir and BCCI will have to persist.
“In terms of the way Gambhir controls his current group of Test players, I think it would be best to be clear and say: ‘Guys, it’s going to be a tough few months on away tours, but let’s focus on the long term.’ But he is going to have to back his horses and, at some point, those horses are going to have to exit their pens and gallop for him,” Bavuma concluded.
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