Mohammad Kaif has questioned Gautam Gambhir‘s overall impact as India Head Coach, rating his two-year tenure at just four out of 10 despite overseeing multiple major tournament victories. While India have lifted the ICC Champions Trophy, retained the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and won the Asia Cup under Gambhir, Kaif believes concerns around communication and man-management continue to cloud the team’s broader progress.
Mixed results despite major titles
Gambhir took charge of the Indian team in 2024 following Rahul Dravid’s departure and has experienced a tenure marked by both significant silverware and difficult setbacks.
India were whitewashed 3-0 at home by New Zealand in a Test series during late 2024 before suffering another home Test series defeat, losing 2-0 to South Africa in 2025. India also endured a difficult Test tour of Australia during Gambhir’s tenure.
Following the IPL, India defeated Afghanistan in the one-off Test before winning the subsequent ODI series. They then suffered a 2-0 T20I series defeat to Ireland before being beaten 4-0 by England in a five-match T20I series, with one match washed out, highlighting the inconsistency that has continued to divide opinion over Gambhir’s tenure.
Kaif questions communication with senior players
Kaif’s assessment also comes amid recent reports surrounding Gautam Gambhir’s relationship with Virat Kohli, including reports following footage that circulated ahead of the England ODI series suggesting the pair were not seeing eye to eye.
Speaking to Cricbuzz, Kaif said, “I’ll reduce some numbers. I’ll give him 4 out of 10. I’ll tell you why. There are recent reports which points out that Gambhir and Kohli are not seeing eye to eye. We have seen Gambhir interacting with Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. This is one problem. The job of the coach and the management is to maintain transparency and to initiate communication. They should keep everyone on the same page. Winning and losing will be on the ground. But the reasons behind them, like if a player is dropped, tell them why so that the player is not in doubt.”
Kaif argued that maintaining trust with senior players is just as important as tactical decisions, particularly as India begin building towards their next major global assignment.
Focus shifts towards the next World Cup cycle
Looking ahead to the 2027 ODI World Cup, Kaif warned that strong relationships within the dressing room will be vital if India are to succeed in overseas conditions.
“Now, if Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir are not working together, this is not a good sign for India. If they are not in the same page, this is bed news for Indian fans. Because in this England tour, we are focussing on the 2027 World Cup,” Kaif added.
He stressed that experienced players must remain central to India’s preparations as they enter the next World Cup cycle.
“It won’t be easy to win in overseas conditions so you have to maintain unity in the team. Senior players have a very big role. You need to go to the senior players’ room and talk to them on how you can fix the problem. This is the job of a coach,” he stated.
India have already begun that build-up with a six-wicket victory over England in the opening ODI, chasing down 258 with Shubman Gill scoring 80 off 75 balls and Axar Patel following up figures of 4 for 62 with an unbeaten half-century to earn the Player of the Match award. The result provided a positive start to the series as attention remains on how Gambhir manages the squad heading into the 2027 ODI World Cup.
