"Even today he is like an innocent kid"- Gautam Gambhir's childhood coach on India's new head coach
Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir's childhood coach Sanjay Bhardwaj opened up on the former cricketer's demeanor. He claimed that Gambhir is wrongly considered to be someone who is arrogant and has a wrong attitude.
Bhardwaj shed light on how Gambhir was always motivated to win and hated losing even during his childhood. He also revealed that the southpaw used to cry when his team lost matches.
Speaking on India's 2018 U19 World Cup winner Manjot Kalra's show on YouTube, here's what Sanjay Bhardwaj had to say about Gautam Gambhir (via Hindustan Times):
"Even today he is like an innocent kid. He has no malice. He is like a 12-year-old kid. People think he is arrogant, but that is his attitude towards winning. I used to make him play matches after nets and he would cry after losing matches. He did not like losing even back then. So, a person with a true personality like him will obviously remain serious."
Bhardwaj reiterated that Gambhir was wrongly considered arrogant and claimed it was just the desire to win that made him look serious all the time.
Sanjay Bhardwaj on Gautam Gambhir's coaching style
There has been some criticism directed at Gautam Gambhir's coaching recently, especially after the part-time option of Shubman Gill conceded 14 runs in an over in the first ODI against Sri Lanka. Former cricketers Saba Karim and Ajay Jadeja felt that it shifted the momentum in the opposition's favor.
However, Sanjay Bhardwaj feels Gambhir's style of coaching is different from that of former coaches like Rahul Dravid and Ravi Shastri. He stated:
"Gautam Gambhir will not go after the technical aspects. Because at that level, there is not need for technical improvement. You are there because you are good enough technically. What Gambhir will work on is the tactical aspects. Gambhir's job will be to boost morale and inject confidence into a player who may not to too sure about himself."
Gambhir had a great start to his coaching career with Team India as they completed a 3-0 series whitewash against Sri Lanka in T20Is. However, the Men in Blue managed to tie the first ODI and have lost the second, putting them in a do-or-die position ahead of the third and final game of the ODI series.