"Dravid was balanced, Gautam is very one-sided about..." Rishabh Pant differentiates Rahul and Gautam as head coach

Gautam Gambhir, the new Head Coach of India, took over the duties after the completion of T20 World Cup-winning coach Rahul Dravid's Tenure. Rishabh Pant has now spoken on the shuttle changes in the team's dressing room and environment around the team's mindset.

After Rahul Dravid, the selection of Gautam Gambhir for the post of Head Coach was a clear-cut indication of the aggressive approach by BCCI. We all have seen how eager Gautam is for a positive result.

Rahul Dravid's tenure as head coach of the Indian cricket team was marked by significant achievements, including guiding the team to multiple ICC finals and ultimately ending their ICC trophy drought by securing a World Cup victory. Under his leadership, India reached the finals of the ICC World Test Championship 2023 and the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, both against Australia.

Despite suffering close defeats in these high-stakes encounters, Dravid's resilience and dedication remained unwavering. The Indian team under his supervision lifted the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 trophy.

Gautam Gambhir was appointed as the head coach of the Indian Cricket team after the World Cup 2024 and the team has played a T20I series and an ODI series under him against Sri Lanka. India won the T20I series 3-0 and lost the ODI series 2-1.

Rishabh Pant, having worked closely with both coaches, shared his insights on their contrasting styles during an interview on JioCinema ahead of the Duleep Trophy 2024, where he represents India B.

Rishabh Pant candidly noted that Rahul Dravid and Gautam Gambhir possess distinct coaching approaches, with Dravid being more balanced and composed, while Gambhir is known for his aggressive demeanor.

The anchor asked, "What is the biggest change that can happen under Gautam Gambhir and how it can take Indian cricket forward?"

Rishabh Pant responded, "I feel Rahul bhai was very balanced as a human being and as a coach. It could be both good and bad because in cricket there can be positives. This is upon the individuals whether to focus on the positives and negatives, and it depends on where individuals want to focus."

"Gauti bhai (Gambhir) is more aggressive, he's very one-sided about the fact that you have to win. But you need to find the right balance and improve. This is the best part of international cricket," he concluded.

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SOURCE: CRICIT (HINDUSTAN TIMES)