Gambhir took over as India head coach from Rahul Dravid after ICC T20 World Cup 2024 win.
Shubman Gill has taken over as Test and ODI captain, while Suryakumar Yadav has taken India to new heights in T20I cricket, winning the Asia Cup 2025 recently. Head coach Gautam Gambhir, who succeeded Rahul Dravid in July 2024, has been a constant presence throughout this time, for both teams.
“Ultimately, Suryakumar Yadav is still the leader of the T20I team. It’s his T20 team, not mine. It’s Shubman’s Test and ODI team, not mine,” Gambhir told Aakash Chopra in an interview for JioHotStar during the ongoing second Test between India and West Indies.
He praised Suryakumar Yadav for captaining India to the Asia Cup win with an unbeaten run that included three wins over arch-rivals Pakistan.
“The kind of character that Surya is, that’s precisely what you want in T20 cricket. He himself is so free, whether with the bat in the middle or off the field. T20 cricket is all about freedom. It’s about expressing yourself. Jaisa character aapka hoga off the field, waisi hi personality hogi on the field. And the character you have will also reflect in the dressing room vibe. The way he has kept the team atmosphere for over a year in the side… look at the results as well. It’s high-risk and high-reward cricket,” Gambhir said.
Talking about himself as the coach of the national team, Gambhir said: “The first conversation I had with Surya was, we will not fear losing. I don’t want to be the most successful coach in the history of Indian cricket. We’d rather be the most fearless team. Ultimately, if I start thinking about us becoming the most successful team, then it will start putting pressure on the kids about results. The most important thing is that the bigger the game, the more fearless and aggressive we need to be. In big games, we should not be scared of making mistakes.
That’s the conversation during the Asia Cup final. Though it was India vs Pakistan, there was so much hype. Told the team that it’s okay to drop a catch, it’s okay to play a bad shot, it’s okay to bowl a shocking ball. Don’t think about what will happen if you make a mistake. The only opinion that should matter is that of the 30 people in our dressing room. Logon ki opinions matter nahi karni chahiye because they’re not experiencing the pressure that we are.”
When Gambhir was asked about being under pressure himself, Gambhir said: “The pressure is on me every day. Be it after the debacle against New Zealand or the Australia series or after winning the Champions Trophy."