Gambhir explains why working with Rohit was ‘very easy’

India head coach Gautam Gambhir spoke about his long-standing relationship with Rohit Sharma, saying their understanding goes beyond the captain-coach dynamic. Gambhir also praised Rohit, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill for putting Indian cricket and the team first

New Delhi: Stating that their mutual understanding extends far beyond the traditional captain-coach dynamic, India head coach Gautam Gambhir on Thursday said his long-standing bond with veteran opener and former captain Rohit Sharma has remained strong, with both knowing how the other thinks.

Gambhir and Rohit will reunite in the dressing room when India begin their home season against the West Indies in the first of three ODIs in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.

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“Rohit and my relationship wasn’t just that of captain and coach. When Rohit came into the team, I was a senior player at that time, so Rohit and my relationship goes back to then.

“Rohit has known me since then. So, often when you have played together, things become very easy. And, in fact, he knows my thinking; I know his thinking. Because tomorrow I might have some other thinking, the captain might have some other thinking, but ultimately, whatever is in the best interest of the team, if that’s the final decision, then nothing can be better than that.

“And that’s why I said that with all four captains I have worked with, this has been my experience with them, that everyone’s focus has been Indian cricket,” Gambhir told JioStar.

Elaborating on his experience of working alongside leaders across formats since taking charge in July 2024, from Rohit to Suryakumar Yadav and now with T20I skipper Shreyas Iyer and Test and ODI captain Shubman Gill, Gambhir lauded their collective ‘team-first’ attitude.

“I have worked with four captains, Rohit, Surya, now with Shubman and Shreyas. All the captains I’ve worked with, everyone’s first intention has always been team first. And I am very fortunate that I have worked with four such people who have always put the team ahead of themselves.

“Ideology can change, your thinking can change, your perspective on reading the game can change, but as long as your intention is right, it makes life a lot easier for any support staff. It started with Rohit, and when Surya became captain for T20, it was a different experience with both of them.

“With Shreyas, I had worked with him in KKR. Before that, when I handed over my captaincy to Shreyas in 2018 for Delhi, I felt that he had that leadership quality. Now, I have got the opportunity to work with him again. With Shubman, he is young.

“If you get captaincy on a tour of England, that too in five Test matches, and if you push someone into the deep sea, either you will swim out really well or you will drown. But the way Shubman has handled Test cricket, it has been brilliant, and I think we will see the best of Shubman in the coming years,” he concluded.