Gautam Gambhir’s aggressive nature when it comes to cricket is well known. Both as a player and as a coach, Gambhir’s aggression has often worked in his favour, but also seen him get involved in clashes on the field, notably with Virat Kohli during the Indian Premier League (IPL).
However, legendary India captain Sourav Ganguly suggested that Gambhir does not need to be rude or rough in his demeanour. However, Ganguly also praised the ideals that Gambhir has instilled into the Team India dressing room.
“You know, he may be rude, rough, but he is a competitor. He does not need to be rude or rough because he is a good man. I have seen, I have played with him for India, but he is a competitor. He wants to win,” Ganguly said in an interview with RevSportz.
“He speaks the right things about his team, tries to create an environment of team, not individuals,” Ganguly added.
Gambhir recently became the first India head coach to win two major ICC trophies, having been at the helm for India’s Champions Trophy 2025 and T20 World Cup 2026 triumphs.
However, Ganguly said that Gambhir’s real test lies in the 50-over Cricket World Cup 2027 and in Test cricket.
“His real test in white ball is going to be in South Africa in 2027. Conditions there will test him but I am confident he will get it right with the team he has,” Ganguly said.
“In red ball, he needs to get better. And the way to do it is to think less about the wicket. He needs to get the wicket out of his system. Take the England series. He couldn’t do anything about the wicket and you can see the results. He doesn’t need to play on turners at home. Good wickets will produce good results,” Ganguly added.
Gambhir’s next assignments as India head coach will start after IPL 2026, with India set to take on Afghanistan and Ireland before a long white-ball series in England.