The first T20I of the three-match series between India and Sri Lanka in Pallekele on Saturday (July 27) will mark the start of the Gautam Gambhir era in Indian cricket. The former Indian opening batter was appointed as the head coach of the senior men’s team on July 9 after Rahul Dravid’s contract came to an end. Dravid, who has been with the Indian team as head coach since November 2021, finished his stint with a T20 World Cup title in June.
Gambhir, who is the fifth ODI World Cup winner to take charge of Team India as head coach, became the favourite for the top job after helping the Kolkata Knight Riders win the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League. The former KKR skipper joined the Shah Rukh Khan-owned franchise as a mentor ahead of IPL 2024 and impressed everyone with his performance.
Ahead of Gambhir’s first match as the head coach, former Indian cricketer Sandeep Patil, who had also served as the chief selector, wished him the best for his new innings with the Indian team.
“Gambhir had done an exceptional job as KKR’s mentor in the IPL, and I hope he continues to do the same with the Indian team as well,” Patil told CricketNext.com on the sidelines of an event organised by the Shrachi Rajasthan Tigers.
According to the member of India’s 1983 World Cup-winning team, even though Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have retired from T20Is, he expects them to play for India in the other two formats of the game for a long time.
“Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are still doing extremely well, and there is no question of an Indian team without them. I wish the Indian team all the best wherever they are playing and whatever tournament they are playing; they are bound to do exceedingly well,” he said.
After Rohit’s retirement from T20Is, Suryakumar Yadav was appointed as India’s captain for T20Is against Sri Lanka, and Patil feels Surya deserved leadership after doing exceptionally well in the shortest format as an India player.
“Surya has been given the captaincy of India’s T20I team because he deserved it. I wish him all the best,” he said.
Surya, who made his T20I debut in March 2021, was preferred over star all-rounder Hardik Pandya for the role of India’s captain. The 33-year-old Mumbaikar made his captaincy debut last year against Australia during a five-match T20I series at home in November-December and has won five out of seven T20Is played so far.
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