The arguments and ultimatum to sack India head coach Gautam Gambhir from the post of red-ball cricket have intensified after India’s humiliating defeat at the hands of South Africa on their home soil after 25 years. India have also dropped to sixth place in the WTC cycle, their worst position under any former coach.
The talk of sacking Gautam Gambhir from the role of Indian head coach grew louder over time, as India’s place in the WTC cycle seemed to be slipping away from Gautam Gambhir’s grasp to continue as the red-ball coach for India.
India are currently placed sixth in the World Test Championship points table and have already lost 4 out of the 9 matches played in this cycle. If India loses further matches then it will be very difficult for it to make it to the top two positions.
Gautam Gambhir’s poor performance continues in red-ball cricket
Gambhir takes over the reins of the Indian team from head coach Rahul Dravid following his retirement following the T20 World Cup win in 2024. Almost two years passed, and Gambhir still could not develop into the ideal red-ball coach for India.
In Gambhir’s era, India won the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy within 6 months of his appointment and emerged as an unbeaten team in T20. But what about the longest format of the game?
Starting with an embarrassing 3-0 defeat against New Zealand on home soil, India’s long-running winning streak at home came to an end. The men in baggy blue then lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy to the Australian team for the first time since 2018.
Gambhir’s Test antics denied India a place in the 2025 WTC final for the third consecutive time. Although the England tour saw some positives, Gambhir was still criticized for his controversial moves, and one of them was his consistent workload management of fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah.
After a 2-2 draw in England and a 2-0 win against West Indies at home, Gambhir faced yet another criticism from WTC defending champions South Africa. After South Africa’s elimination, Gambhir received threats and was booed and publicly embarrassed.
Gautam Gambhir will remain India’s coach till 2027 World Cup
The Indian crowd has never been this cruel to any Indian coach or even any Indian player before, despite his weakest aspects, but this time it was definitely different.
There were many calls for Gambhir to be sacked as India’s red-ball coach and another coach to be appointed in the format, while Gambhir remained in limited-overs cricket. However, the idea of ​​divided coaching did not appeal to BCCI.
According to the report of Dainik Jagran correspondent Abhishek Tripathi, BCCI is saying that no change is going to happen now. The idea sounds good and effective, but Gautam Gambhir will remain till the 2027 ODI World Cup.
The memorial of separate coaches of red ball and white ball is great. However, Gambhir will remain the coach of the Indian team till the 2027 World Cup. No change is taking place.#IndianCricket
-Abhishek Tripathi/Abhishek Tripathi (@abishereporter) 29 December 2025
Will serious and co. Successful in defending ICC T20 World Cup title?
Gautam Gambhir has coached India and led an unbeaten sequence in the bilateral T20I series. However, his biggest challenge will be to continue his performance in the T20 World Cup, because once the knockouts come, the chances will not come again.
The Indian team will play an ICC tournament for the first time in the last one and a half decade without its two stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Although the bowling deck is similar to that of the 2024 World Cup-winning team, the batsmen will have to do a consistent job at the top.
India is the host as well as defending champion of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 and hence there will be a lot of expectations from the players as well as the national coach.
Also read: “Feel like a movie” – Angkrish Raghuvanshi reveals real experience of batting with Rohit Sharma
