"He will infuse that winning culture" - Dinesh Karthik wants Gautam Gambhir to take up Team India's head coach role after IPL 2024 success
Dinesh Karthik believes Gautam Gambhir would be the ideal candidate for the role of Team India's head coach. Karthik suggested that the former opening batter must consider taking up the job if he is given the opportunity.
Gambhir joined Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) ahead of IPL 2024 as their mentor. KKR clinched their third IPL title as they trumped SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) by eight wickets in the final in Chennai on Sunday, May 26.
Karthik reckoned that Gambhir infused a winning culture within the Kolkata-based team, and backed him to do the same with the national side.
"He has really built a good team, one that will have a lot of players retained, and he's left them in a very, very good place. If he gets the opportunity, I really wish he takes it. Being part of the national team and the patriotism that he has, I think he will definitely be tempted to take it," Karthik told Cricbuzz.
"I really wish he comes in because he will infuse that winning culture he's infused here, and India would do very well under him. When it comes to KKR, whenever he's back, they'll take him back with open arms," he added.
Karthik also spoke about Gambhir's impressive record in the IPL, pointing out the success he has had while mentoring Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and KKR.
"What a record he's had as a coach. Being the mentor for LSG, two years on the bounce qualifying, comes to KKR, and they say, 'Please, got to do something special for us', ends up with the trophy. He's been at the helm, taken all the decisions, be it sending Narine opening, or getting Mitchell Starc in the auction, all of those big recruits and getting the right team, the balance, and then taking all the shots. I'm seeing the news that he could part of the Indian team as well, and I really wish he does. He has that fire in him," he stated.
It is worth mentioning that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has reportedly approached Gautam Gambhir to be Team India's next coach as current coach Rahul Dravid's tenure will come to an end after the 2024 T20 World Cup.
"They never understood his side of the story" - Dinesh Karthik on KKR captain Shreyas's low phase after the 2023 World Cup
During the same discussion, Dinesh Karthik also spoke about how KKR skipper Shreyas Iyer had gone through a tough phase in his career despite being one of India's top performers at the 2023 ODI World Cup.
Iyer had missed a few domestic matches citing back issues. However, it led to him losing the BCCI's central contract.
"He went through a bit of a lull post the World Cup, which was probably one of the highlights of his career. He had a phenomenal World Cup What a tournament that was for him personally. He was one of the key players and did really well. But post that, his back struggle again started. He was picking and choosing matches, and it didn't look good optically. People reacted a lot on what happened, they never understood his side of the story. By the time it came out, it was a bit too late," Karthik said.
Noting that Shreyas Iyer and Gautam Gambhir worked well together for the IPL 2024, Karthik added:
"They work well, fire and ice. Gambhir is that guy who pushes the team to do those tough things, and Shreyas Iyer is a lot more calmer, he's got a way of approaching things, and he's handled a lot of the boys who must be going through different mindsets at different points of time with a lot of doubts really well."
KKR bundled out SRH for a paltry score of 113 in the IPL 2024 final. They chased down the score comfortably in just 10.3 overs.