Gautam Gambhir’s position as India’s all-format head coach is already under the scanner, and now former spinner Harbhajan Singh has added fuel to the fire. India’s recent Test record under Gambhir has been overwhelming, and now calls have grown for the coach’s sacking as the red-ball coach.
The crumbling Test fortress: Gambhir’s biggest failure
In the last two years, India has suffered two painful home whitewashes under Gambhir’s leadership. First came the shocking 0-3 defeat against New Zealand in 2024, followed by another blow when South Africa crushed India 0-2 at home last year.
The New Zealand whitewash was especially damaging as it knocked India out of contention for the ICC World Test Championship 2025 final. Now, the recent Test whitewash against South Africa has only deepened the crisis.
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India’s chances of making the next World Test Championship final are now hanging by a thread and will depend heavily on the results in the upcoming Test series. However, under Gambhir, the Men in Blue won the Asia Cup and ICC Champions Trophy last year.
Harbhajan Singh drops a verdict on Gautam Gambhir
Harbhajan Singh has thrown his weight behind the growing call to remove Gautam Gambhir as the all-format head coach of the Indian cricket team. In a bold statement, Harbhajan cited the team’s alarming decline in Test cricket but urged the BCCI to avoid a “drastic, emotional decision” and respect Gambhir’s legacy as a player.
The former World Cup winner has pointed out that coaching India is one of the toughest jobs in world cricket. He also pointed out that when India wins, people used to forget to give credit to the coach, but when the team loses, the blame is almost always put on him.
Harbhajan Singh was quoted as saying by ANI, “It is not that easy to become a coach of India. To be a coach, you have to travel with the team for a whole year and keep yourself involved in the game. You have to be more engaged because there are multiple team selections, and you also need to focus on match results. In India, it is our tradition that if the team plays well, everyone is quiet, but as soon as the team plays poorly, we get on top of the coach.”
“A coach doesn’t play”: Harbhajan’s warning and the road ahead
However, Harbhajan defended Gautam Gambhir, insisting that on-field failures shouldn’t tarnish his legendary playing career. On the hot topic of split coaching roles, the former Indian spinner suggested a wait-and-watch approach, as sudden decisions could do more harm than good.
Harbhajan signed off by saying, “Gautam Gambhir does not go there to play. When he was playing, he played well. He played very well for India. Everyone needs to be patient. If you feel you need to split the coaching, such as adopting a policy of one white ball and one red ball, then there is no need to do so for now. But over time, if needed, you should definitely do it. There is nothing wrong with that.”
