Is Gautam Gambhir Turning Out To Be Greg Chappell 2.0?

Gautam Gambhir and Greg Chappell as the head coaches of the Indian Cricket Team [X]Gautam Gambhir and Greg Chappell as the head coaches of the Indian Cricket Team [X]

Indian cricket is going through a transition phase after the successful culmination of Rahul Dravid's coaching tenure. The baton has now been passed to the former T20I and World Cup winner of India, Gautam Gambhir. The former Indian opener has come up with some radical ideas and is looking to bring about a change in the whole set-up. 

The changes and his though processes has led some of ICT fans to believe that, GG might well turn out to a 2.0 version of Greg Chappell. Notably, the Australian legend was the coach of the Indian cricket team from 2005-2007. Many regard this as one of the darkest phases in Indian cricket which culminated in India's shambolic show and group stage exit in ODI World Cup 2007. 

But what is the amount of truth in this claim by a section of the fans? Is Gambhir's era going to take Indian cricket to the dark days it saw about 17-19 years back? In order to answer this question let us look a some of the points that might have ignited this discussion. 


Similarities between Gambhir and Chappell

Looking to build too many utility players

In the T20I and ODI series against Sri Lanka, we saw that Gautam Gambhir is trying to stress on building utility players. He is looking more for players who can contribute to the team's cause in all situations. From the use of Rinku Singh and Suryakumar Yadav in the last two overs of the third T20I to the prevalence of all-rounders in both the teams everything indicate towards this. 

The same was seen during the Chappell-era, when the then Indian coach was trying to bring out the batter in Irfan Pathan and played him in the top-order many a times across formats. Many believe that his move killed the bowler inside Pathan and he did not realise his full potential. In another controversial move, Sachin Tendulkar was demoted to number 4 in the ODIs. This did impact the team balance, as the great batter had always batted at the top and found it difficult to adjust to the new role. 

Attitude and persona

Gautam Gambhir radiates a strong personality, who thinks deep and most of the times sticks to the decisions he takes. Greg Chappell also exhibited similar characteristics and that went against him in most cases. His persona and tendency to force his decisions on the team put them under pressure and as a result the Indian team at that stage got divided. The lack of unity in the team was seen in their on-field performances. A section of the Indian fans believe that the Gambhir-era might head towards a similar direction. 


Advantages of Gambhir over Chappell

Understanding the pulse of India

Greg Chappell had the Australian mentality in him and tried to form the Indian team with that. This one of the main reasons that things went south for him. This is where Gautam Gambhir has an advantage over Chappell. Being a part of the Indian dressing room for an extended period of time, Gambhir knows the culture there and understands the pulse of the team. He knows how to implement his plans smoothly.

Experience of managing Indian franchises

Gautam Gambhir has already had the experience of managing two Indian franchises in the Indian Premier League. This has allowed him to work under pressure and deliver. The fact that he has still been successful points to the fact that Gambhir knows how to operate while having pressure on his head. On the other hand, Greg Chappell did not have the experience of operating under the pressure and demands of Indian crowd. 

Conclusion

India had a good start under Gambhir when they whitewashed Sri Lanka in the T20I series. Although the success did not follow in the ODIs it is too quick to judge Gambhir as a coach. He has managed LSG and KKR successfully and will be looking to follow it up for India. With the track record and what he has displayed so far, there are little chances that things will go south for Indian cricket under him. The best thing to do will be to allow time to answer all the questions.