'Gautam Gambhir has become India's punching bag': Report dismisses Ajit Agarkar rift, says coach 'safe' until 2027 World Cup
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'Gautam Gambhir has become India's punching bag': Report dismisses Ajit Agarkar rift, says coach 'safe' until 2027 World Cup originally appeared on Cricket News. Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Gautam Gambhir has been made into a “punching bag” even though India has won two ICC trophies in his reign, says a report.
- Rumours about his rift with chief selector Ajit Agarkar have been denied in the report.
- It is claimed that Gambhir's position as head coach will remain 'safe' until the ODI World Cup 2027.
Gautam Gambhir backed despite criticism over India’s results
Gautam Gambhir has turned out to be one of the most controversial personalities in Indian cricket after his appointment as head coach as all the decisions made by him and their results have been critically analysed.
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But according to a report by Abhishek Tripathi in Jagran, Gambhir has become the "punching bag" for the team as he is always blamed for whatever happens irrespective of India's performance.
Per the report, Gambhir continues to receive criticism even after turning out to be the first Indian head coach who leads his team to win two successive ICC titles in the 2025 Champions Trophy and 2026 T20 World Cup.
Moreover, it was further added that there is no threat to the job of Gambhir as he would continue as the head coach of India until the 2027 ODI World Cup.
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No rift between Gautam Gambhir and Ajit Agarkar, says report
The possibility of any rift between Gambhir and the chief selector Ajit Agarkar was talked about, after some remarks made by former Indian cricket player Dinesh Karthik, who felt that there may be some disagreement in the Indian decision-making panel.
But the report debunked all these allegations and said that Gambhir and Agarkar are still in agreement with each other on most of the important matters.
As per the report, some source said that there is an exchange of ideas between the head coach and the chief selector and "talk twice a day".
"The two men, Agarkar and Gambhir do not have any problem with each other, they are rather angry with some selectors, who are trying to hog the limelight," said the report.
The report said that some selectors are making efforts to show that India has progressed because of their decisions and have criticized the coach only for failures.
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Gambhir blamed for every selection decision?
The report brought to light how Gambhir has been blamed by people for his decisions regarding players of India.
Right from the future of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to Suryakumar Yadav being captain, Washington Sundar being a part of the team and the decision involving Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, and Vaibhav Suryavanshi, it was all put on Gambhir according to the report.
BCCI/Creimas
The report even talked about how he was blamed when Kohli got out by a straight delivery during practice in the nets, some of his fans accusing Gambhir of pressurizing the former captain of India through watching him bat from nearby nets.
According to the report, Gambhir was also blamed for playing Vaibhav Suryavanshi in a T20 match and then dropping him in the next one.
Sanju Samson too, whose selection in the final T20I against England, was also a decision taken by the head coach, according to the report.
The report also highlights the divided opinions of fans have led to Gambhir being the target of blame of various fans.
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Gambhir's record as India head coach
Despite criticism, Gambhir's record since taking charge includes several significant achievements.
Gautam Gambhir's coaching record
FormatMatchesWinsLossesNo results/tiesT20Is5337124ODIs241761Tests197102Achievements under Gambhir:
- Won 2025 Champions Trophy, ending 12-year wait for an ICC title.
- Won 2025 Asia Cup and defeated Pakistan three times.
- Won 2026 T20 World Cup.
- Drawn five-Test series in England 2-2 in 2025.
- Won T20I series in Australia and New Zealand.
- Completed T20I clean sweeps against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
- Won Test series against Bangladesh and West Indies.
Major disappointments under Gambhir:
- Losing home Test series 0-3 against New Zealand in 2025.
- Losing Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia in 2024-25.
- Losing Test series 0-2 against South Africa in 2025.
- Losing ODI series in Sri Lanka in 2024 after 27 years.
- Failing to win a single ODI in the 2024 calendar year.
- Losing ODI series against New Zealand in 2026.
- Losing T20I series against Ireland for the first time in 2026.
- Suffering 0-4 defeat against England in five-match T20I series in 2026.
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Selection debates and support staff concerns during Gambhir’s tenure
Sanju Samson, selectors and internal disagreements
The report denied any rumours about a rift between Gambhir and Agarkar but mentioned that there were differences of opinion between the coaches and selectors, including those on why Sanju Samson was not selected for the Zimbabwe tour.
It further stated that the two were dissatisfied with certain selectors getting too much into team affairs because of their poor performance.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi selection controversy
BCCI/Creimas
The report indicated that initially, Vaibhav Suryavanshi was not considered as an integral part of the Indian team for the first six games of the season due to pressure indirectly exerted.
The selection of Suryavanshi has raised questions on how India would handle him.
Ryan ten Doeschate and T Dilip support staff debate
The report had criticized the support staff structure in India, saying that the appointments which had been liked by Gambhir had changed and both Abhishek Nayar and T Dilip had been kept.
Further, it had mentioned that there was an argument on the duties of Dilip, whereas it was not known what were the duties of Ryan ten Doeschate.
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