"Gambhir does not go there to play": Harbhajan Singh on split coaching for India

India suffered two whitewashes at home in the last two years. The Asian Giants suffered a humiliating 0-3 loss to New Zealand in 2024, followed by a 0-2 thrashing at home by South Africa in 2025, under head coach Gautam Gambhir.

New Zealand's 3-0 whitewash also marked the end of India's great Test empire, which had been well guarded by leaders like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma for over a decade.

The NZ whitewash cost a once well-settled India a place in the ICC World Test Championship 2025 final, and the latest setback to the Proteas could also end up costing them a berth in the marquee one-off Test championship clash, depending on how further results go.

On the other hand, Gambhir led India to lift the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy title in Dubai, and the Men in Blue have performed well in the white-ball format.

Speaking to ANI, former Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh emphasised the responsibilities that come with becoming the coach of the Indian cricket team. He added that in India, when the team does well, everyone stays quiet, and when the side performs poorly, everyone starts pointing out the coach.

"It is not that easy to become a coach of India. To be a coach, you have to travel with the team for a whole year and keep yourself involved in the game. You have to be more engaged because there are multiple team selections, and you also need to focus on match results. In India, it is our tradition that if the team plays well, everyone is quiet, but as soon as the team plays poorly, we get on top of the coach," Harbhajan said.

"Gautam Gambhir does not go there to play. When he was playing, he played well. He played very well for India. Everyone needs to be patient. If you feel you need to split the coaching, such as adopting a policy of one white ball and one red ball, then there is no need to do so for now. But over time, if needed, you should definitely do it. There is nothing wrong with that," he added. (ANI)