Kapil Dev, the 1983 World Cup-winning captain, believes Gautam Gambhir might be the Indian team’s manager but not its coach. The former India opener has been under fire recently after the Men in Blue were defeated 0-2 at home by South Africa in a Test series last month. Gambhir’s coaching tenure with the Indian side has not gone well, with Test series failures against Australia, New Zealand, and now the Proteas raising worries.
Kapil remarked that the term ‘coach’ is frequently misconstrued in modern cricket. According to the legendary cricketer, players receive tutoring while they are young. However, when they come on the international stage, they already have unique skill sets, making standard coaching unfeasible.
“Today, that word called a coach ‘coach’ is a very common word today. Gautam Gambhir can’t be a coach. He can be a manager of the team. When you say coach, coach is where I learn in the school and college. Those were the people, my coach there. They can manage me,” Kapil said while speaking at the Indian Chamber of Commerce ICC Centenary Session.
“How can you be a coach when they have given a name to let’s say anybody a leg spinner? How can Gautam can be a coach to a leg spinner or to the wicket-keeper? I think you have to manage. That’s more important. As a manager you give them encouragement to say you can do it because when you become a manager the young boys look up to you,” the Haryana Hurricane added.
Kapil added that the primary responsibility of a captain or coach-turned-player is to bring comfort and confidence to a player who is battling with a lack of form.
“How can my manager or captain can give me that comfort and that’s what the manager and captain’s job is – to give comfort to the team and always say ‘you can do better’. That’s the way I look at it.”
Kapil Dev
If somebody made a hundred, I don’t want to have a drink and dinner with him: Kapil Dev
Kapil Dev also stated that a coach should spend more time with someone who is not performing well than with a player who is in form.
“I think you have to give comfort to the people who are not playing well. If somebody made a hundred, I don’t want to have a drink and dinner with him. There are a lot of people there As a captain I would like to have a drink with people or I like to have a dinner with people who are not performing.”
Kapil Dev
“You need to give them the confidence and that’s what happens. So I think it’s very important as a captain and your role is not only your performance, it is also about putting the team together.”
Kapil Dev
