Gautam Gambhir on his team coaching mantra, India head coach gig speculations and KKR’s IPL win

Gautam Gambhir, the front-runner for the post of the Indian men’s cricket team’s next head coach, on Friday parried the question of the possibility of him taking over from Rahul Dravid but underlined that individuals could not be ‘be-all-and-end-all’ in a team sport.

Gambhir, who mentored Kolkata Knight Riders to its third title win this season, said right now he was enjoying KKR’s success.

“It is difficult to answer that. Right now I am in a happy space having been just finished KKR’s journey,” said Gambhir at the ‘Rise to Leadership’ event organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce here.

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Gambhir said individuals in a team game needed to be treated fairly. “The team is the most important thing. Individuals can’t be the be-all-and-end-all in a team. If you focus on two-three people, just imagine what will happen to others. From the masseur to the captain, you cannot discriminate between people. You got to treat people equally. That’s the most important culture and I will always have this philosophy.”

Gambhir said it was important to take the decisions with right intent.

Talking about white ball cricket which is heavily tilted towards the batters, Gambhir said it was the job of the International Cricket Council (ICC) to see that all sorts of cricketers, including finger spinners, got equal opportunity.

While sharing his experience under different captains, Gambhir said, “I enjoyed playing a lot with MS (Dhoni) and the way he led the team.”

About his great rapport with KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan, Gambhir said, “I’ve the privilege of working with the best IPL owner. There has been no conversation of cricket with him in the eight years.”