NEW DELHI: Former India coach
Lalchand Rajput
believes that
Gautam Gambhir
is the ideal candidate to lead Indian cricket forward. Rajput praises Gambhir for being a shrewd tactician and a no-nonsense individual, emphasising his added value to the team as a two-time World Cup winner.
Although it remains unclear whether Gambhir has officially applied for the position of India coach, there is speculation that he might replace
Rahul Dravid
after the
T20 World Cup
.
The deadline for applications for the job ended on May 27.
"Gambhir is a no-nonsense guy, he has played cricket the hard way and he reads the game well and that has been seen for KKR (Kolkata Knight Riders) as well," Rajput, who coached India to T20 World Cup win in 2007, told PTI in an exclusive interaction on Tuesday.
Rajput also cited Gambhir's successful tenure with the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, where his leadership was instrumental in their title victory.
"KKR was the same team last year and you see the difference that he made this year. He is a shrewd tactician as well," said Rajput, the director of cricket for Jabalpur Lions in the upcoming Madhya Pradesh T20 League (MPT20) the Scindia Cup.
Rajput also noted that Gambhir's experience as a two-time World Cup-winning Indian player would be invaluable to the team.
"I am sure with all his experience — he has won two World Cups as a player — that will really add value. He is a good candidate, but it all depends upon the
BCCI
who they want. He will be the right candidate to take Indian cricket forward," Rajput added.
The former India opener drew comparisons between the 2007 World T20 winning squad and the current team in the Americas, emphasizing the importance of having experienced players in the lineup.
"You got to have some experience as well. We can't just go with the fairly new (side) because in the World Cup, pressure is also there," he said.
"You should have some senior guys and along with that the juniors because they have to complement each other. Even if you look at our 2007 squad, there were seniors like (Virender) Sehwag, Gambhir, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan (Singh), RP Singh, Yuvraj Singh…”
"Yes, there were youngsters like Rohit Sharma, Robin Uthappa and even Dinesh Karthik — there was a good mixture (and) it complemented well," he said.
Rajput acknowledged that selecting India's playing XI would be a challenge but expressed his support for
Rishabh Pant
as the wicketkeeper-batter and
Virat Kohli
as the opener.
"It is a headache to get to the final XI because everybody has been performing well. But wicket-keeping choice, definitely, Pant is the frontrunner because there is no other second thought," he said.
"It is the only thing who will open, if (Yashasvi) Jaiswal opens, then your balance becomes a little bit (off), then you can't play both Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube."
“Looking at the balance, Virat Kohli opens, then you can have Suryakumar (Yadav) at No. 3, then No 4. can be Pant. At five, Hardik Pandya, No. 6 will be Shivam Dube," he added.
Rajput urged the Indian team to adopt a positive mindset and focus on their performance rather than the end result as they chase the elusive ICC trophy.
"The main thing is that you don't have to take any pressure because in T20 format you got to go there and express yourself."
(With PTI inputs)
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