Clarity and communication emerged as the two main topics when Mohammad Kaif and Zaheer Khan were asked to rate the Team India coach Gautam Gambhir. Both of the former India cricketers mentioned that the current coaching setup led by Gambhir needs to maintain better communication between the players so that everyone in the team stays aware of their roles.
Since Gautam Gambhir took over the reins of the India National Cricket Team as the head coach, the squads went through a lot of shuffling across the formats. The management is still following the pattern, which often raises doubts over the communication between the players and the coach and the management.
Mohammad Kaif rated Gautam Gambhir 4/10
Mohammad Kaif rated Gautam Gambhir-led Indian team management only 4 out of 10 as he sensed a lack of clarity and communication inside the team. Ahead of the India vs England 1st ODI, reports were suggesting Gambhir and Virat Kohli were not on talking terms.
Kaif said that the possible distance between the batter and the head coach is not an ideal advertisement for the team. The former India batter mentioned Sanju Samson’s situation to strengthen his opinion. Samson was in the playing combination during the India vs England T20I series to make room for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. Three games later, Samson returned to the playing eleven again, and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was dropped.
“We are hearing that Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir are not coming forward. We are not able to see the picture. We are not able to see if they are talking or not. We have seen with Rohit Sharma that Gautam Gambhir is talking in practice,” Mohammad Kaif said during a Cricbuzz discussion Panel.
“The job of coaches is that if the players are not happy with their performance, if they are not treated well, if they are not happy, we are talking about Samson; they were dropped, or Sooryavanshi was dropped. This is the job of the coach… So, the job of all of them is to have transparency, to keep the communication,” he added.
Zaheer Khan rated Gautam Gambhir 6/10
Zaheer Khan was not as vocal as Kaif was. While Kaif rated Gambhir 4, Zaheer Khan rated the coach 6 out of ten because of the success the team gained during the 2026 World Cup under his coaching.
“Look, in his leadership, he has won the World Cup. Yes, he has won the World Cup. Defending. By making the environment in such a way in domestic conditions, you have also achieved that. So, your highs are also good. So, I think I will give six such numbers,” Zaheer Khan mentioned.
Things are a work in progress now: Zaheer Khan
Like Kaif, Zaheer also believed that there should be more clarity and better communication inside the team between the players and coach. According to the former fast bowler, the communication and clarity in Indian cricket are in progress.
“As far as the question of improvement is concerned, as far as the question of transparency is concerned, as far as the question of stability that we were talking about, the question of communication is concerned, you can say that all those things are work in progress now. Or you can say concern,” Zaheer Khan opined.
BIG STATEMENT- Rate GAUTAM GAMBHIR
🏏 Kaif’s Rating: 4/10
“Needs transparency. The coach must keep everyone on the same page and communicate clearly with players about why they are dropped or benched (like the Samson situation). Back in the day, John Wright and Sourav Ganguly…— Sunil Gavaskar (@virender_swag) July 15, 2026
