Team India’s current head coach Gautam Gambhir reckons that being a coach is much tougher that being a player. He claimed that coaches get criticized unfairly even for stuff that they are not responsible for.

Former India batter, Gambhir played 242 international matches across the three formats, scoring 10,324 runs at an average of 38.95, with 20 hundreds and 63 fifties. Post retirement, he served as the mentor of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL before replacing Rahul Dravid as Team India’s head coach.

During his appearance on The Great Indian Kapil Show on Netflix, Gambhir was asked by the host to pick the more challenging job between playing cricket and coaching a team. Without hesitating, he picked the latter and explained:

“It’s more challenging because you can’t step onto the field. Sirf aapko gaaliyan hi padti hai (You only get abused). The players don’t get cursed as much as the coach. A lot of things are said that the coach isn’t even responsible for. That’s why a coach’s role is a lot more difficult as compared to players.

“You cannot control things. You can devise the strategy and guide the players, but ultimately you cannot go out and play. So, even the coach’s performance depends on how the players perform,” the 43-year-old went on to add.

With Gambhir as head coach, Team India have had a mixed run so far. They lifted the T20 World Cup held in the United States and West Indies last year. The Men in Blue also won the Champions Trophy held earlier this year.

On the other hand, India failed to qualify for the 2025 World Test Championship final. They suffered their first whitewash at home in a Test series of three or more matches as New Zealand thumped them 3-0 last year. India also suffered a 3-1 loss in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. Earlier, in August 2024, they succumbed to their first bilateral ODI series loss to Sri Lanka since 1997.

“Someone had to stay serious” – Gautam Gambhir on his much talked about personality

As a cricketer, Gambhir, just like his name, was known as a serious player on the field. Not much has changed since retirement. As s coach as well, he has retained more or less the same demeanor. Asked to shed light on his personality, the former India cricket commented:

“Because I was serious I could bring a smile to so many people’s faces. Someone had to stay serious. I became that person so that everyone else could relax.”

Gambhir played a key role in India’s 2007 T20 World Cup triumph and the 2011 ODI World Cup victory. The southpaw top-scored in finals of both tournaments, smashing 75 and 97 respectively.