Gautam Gambhir, the former India opener and mentor of the IPL 2024 champions Kolkata Knight Riders, held a meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday. The meeting has sparked speculation about Gambhir’s potential appointment as the next Indian cricket team coach.
Gambhir, who was a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) until recently, took to X (formerly Twitter) to share the news of his meeting with Shah. He congratulated Shah on the party’s recent electoral success and praised his leadership as Home Minister.
Gambhir, who previously served as a ruling party MP from East Delhi, has stepped back from active politics to focus on his cricket coaching career. He is widely seen as a strong candidate to succeed Rahul Dravid as the head coach of the Indian team after the T20 World Cup. Dravid has confirmed that he will step down from the position following the tournament.
While BCCI secretary Jay Shah has not yet made any official statement regarding the potential new appointment, it has been reported that the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), led by Ashok Malhotra, has not yet interviewed any candidates for the position. Sources within the BCCI suggest that Gambhir’s appointment may be a mere formality due to the lack of other suitable Indian candidates.
Since guiding KKR to victory, the call for Gambhir to become the national team coach has intensified. During a promotional event in Dubai, Gambhir himself expressed his desire to take on the role.
