With international cricket paused for the Indian team after the ICC Champions Trophy, players are joining their IPL teams. However, head coach Gautam Gambhir is expected to be active sooner, potentially joining the India ‘A’ team before the senior team’s England tour in June. Reports suggest Gambhir will be the first Indian head coach to accompany the A team on an overseas tour.
Previously, the BCCI used National Cricket Academy coaches for India A and U19 assignments. Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman are examples of NCA coaches who guided junior teams. After Dravid became the senior team’s head coach, Laxman and others took over these responsibilities.
Gambhir aims to change this pattern and has informed the board of his intention. Neither Rahul Dravid nor Ravi Shastri traveled with the India A team as senior team head coaches. This makes Gambhir’s potential assignment unique.
According to reports, it’s unclear if Gambhir will travel to England as an observer or as part of the India A coaching staff. Since returning from an unsuccessful campaign in Australia, Gambhir is focused on improving India’s red-ball cricket performance and believes analyzing the reserve talent pool is essential.
A BCCI source mentioned that Gambhir has discussed with the board his desire to travel with India ‘A’ to better assess the reserve players. Following India’s Champions Trophy win, partly due to Gambhir’s wildcard player suggestions, he might have a greater influence in the future.
Gambhir also believes the current number of India ‘A’ tours is insufficient and wants more to be organized.
A source noted that reviving India ‘A’ tours is a key issue. There have been few ‘A’ series since Dravid left the NCA, mostly shadow tours for major series. Gambhir thinks more ‘A’ tours are necessary to properly evaluate the situation firsthand.
