Staff first, money later for new India coach Gambhir

IMAGE: IMAGE: Virat Kohli with Gautam Gambhir at the Eden Gardens during the IPL 2024 season. Photograph:  KKR/Instagram

The financial nitty-gritties of Gautam Gambhir's appointment as India's head coach are yet to be worked out but that's the "last of his concerns" right now as he is focussed on getting a support staff of choice to prepare for the enormous challenges that await him during the three-year stint.

On Tuesday, BCCI secretary Jay Shah officially announced Gambhir's appointment, which was on cards for a long time. However, it is learnt that his salary is yet to be finalised although it is expected to be in the same bracket as that of his predecessors Rahul Dravid and Ravi Shastri.

"For Gautam, it was important that he took charge and salary and other stuff can be worked out as it's not going anywhere. It is similar to the case of Ravi Shastri in 2014 when he was first made Director of Cricket over head coach Duncan Fletcher," a BCCI source told PTI.

"The day Ravi joined, he didn't even have a contract and things worked out. In case of Gautam also, some finer details are being worked out. The salary will be in the same range of Rahul Dravid," he added.

It is understood that Gambhir will be given his own team to work with, who will also closely co-ordinate with the NCA (National Cricket Academy) coaches, who look after the pathways teams (India A and U-19) as well as the targetted players.

"I look forward to working closely with the BCCI, Head of Cricket – Mr VVS Laxman, the support staff, and, most importantly, the players, as we work towards achieving success in the upcoming tournaments," Gambhir had said.

Laxman is currently in Zimbabwe with the young T20 team, but it is expected that once he is back, the NCA head, along with the new head coach and chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar, the two captains Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya will have a discussion on the road ahead.

Abhishek Nayar, the head of KKR's academy and a former Mumbai player, has been a key strategist for the IPL franchise. He also serves as a life coach, providing one-on-one professional assistance to players. He is known to be one of current captain Rohit Sharma's closest friends and is expected to be one of the assistant coaches.

A BCCI office-bearer, primarily operating from Delhi, has suggested L Balaji and Zaheer Khan as potential candidates for the bowling coach position. Reports have also mentioned R Vinay Kumar as Gambhir's choice for the role. However, it's unclear whether the BCCI has rejected these proposals, as there has been no confirmation from BCCI secretary Jay Shah.

Regarding the fielding coach position, there has been talk of Jonty Rhodes' name resurfacing. However, in the past, BCCI has tended to prefer utilizing its own talent in coaching roles. For instance, R Sridhar and T Dilip, who have worked their way up through the NCA and India U-19 set-up, have been preferred choices.

Some suggest that Munish Bali, who has been involved with the set-up for some time and is familiar with the young players coming through the system, could also be given a chance.

Gambhir's immediate focus for the next year is on the traditional formats of the game, ODIs and Tests, despite the imminent announcement of the T20I and ODI squad for the Sri Lanka series.