Gautam Gambhir has received some backing from the former India bowling coach Bharat Arun before the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Arun reckons that Gambhir’s fighting spirit will come in handy during the five-match Test series in Australia.
Gambhir has had a tough start to his career as India’s head coach. Under him, India lost an ODI series to Sri Lanka after 27 years and was recently whitewashed by New Zealand at home 0-3.
With the highly anticipated Australia series to begin, Gautam Gambhir and his coaching staff are under huge pressure. India is also under pressure to qualify for the World Test Championship final and they need to win four Tests to make it through.
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Bharat Arun backs Gautam Gambhir for BGT 2024-25
During an interview with RevSportz, Bharat Arun was asked about Gautam Gambhir’s tough start to his coaching career. He was also asked about his fighting spirit and how it can help the team perform in Australia.
Arun claimed that Gambhir is a straight talker and is very clear about his words. He further mentioned that Gambhir’s fighting nature can help Team India to stay strong in tough Australian conditions. He, therefore, backed Gambhir to do the job.
“We all know Gautam (Gambhir) is a tough man. In all my interactions with him at KKR, what I have seen is he is a straight talker. With him, you get what you see. There is nothing that is left unsaid. He will make sure that he fights till the last ball,” Arun said.
“That’s how he is and that’s what stands you apart in Australia. They will challenge you and you need to be strong enough to deal with them. I think Gautam can do the job. We need to stand by him and back him fully,” he added.
Bharat Arun and Gambhir worked together for KKR
Bharat Arun has worked alongside Gautam Gambhir in the Kolkata Knight Riders set-up previously in IPL 2024. Gambhir was the team’s mentor while Arun was the bowling coach. Both have shared good relationships with each other in the past.
Arun has previously served as India’s bowling coach as well, in two stints. He is credited with contributing a lot to India’s fast bowling in the past decade.
After success in IPL 2024 as a mentor, Gautam Gambhir was offered the role of India’s head coach by the BCCI and he took the opportunity. But he hasn’t got a great start to his coaching career so far.
Gambhir looking to come back hard
There have been questions already on his role but Gautam Gambhir is known for his tough personality and will be aiming to come back hard. However, it won’t be easy for him to overcome a tough Australian challenge in their own conditions.
The first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy will be played in Perth from November 22. The second Test will be played in Adelaide and it will be a day-night Test as well. The final three Tests will be played in Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney respectively.
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