The Indian cricket team not only bagged the Champions Trophy 2025 and the Asia Cup 2025 under the coach Gautam Gambhir but also suffered a few demoralizing losses. After their recent home ODI series against New Zealand, their 1-2 defeat has raised doubts about Gambhir’s career.
In the next two years, there are two major ICC events scheduled, one where India will be defending their T20 World Cup title this year followed by the 2027 ODI World Cup. However, the defeats and the unstable results of the Indian team under Gambhir have made it uncertain whether he is the right coach to take the team to these global tournaments.
Indian cricketer Ajinkya Rahane was in agreement with this issue and he mentioned Gambhir’s thinking of frequently changing the line-up as one of the main reasons for the team’s defeat against the Kiwis and that the coach would now have to face criticism for his tactics.
Rahane stated in an interview with Cricbuzz, “There will be hard questions to answer. In the last 9 ODIs, India lost 5. The reason is the frequent changes in the team. That’s why I said you are heading towards the World Cup where players need that security, they need that clarity from the management. If you are going to play those certain players in that format, it’s always about clarity. There will be tough questions which is very natural I feel.”
Losses under Gautam Gambhir as head coach of India
Speaking of losses at home, India faced a 0-3 defeat against the Kiwis in Tests in 2024. This was the first time India was whitewashed at home in a three-Test series. The breakup also led to the end of India’s remarkable home-Test unbeaten streak starting from 2012, as they had won 18 home Test series in a row.
Once again, the Indian cricket team was no match for the South African cricket team as they were defeated 0-2 in the Test series. The victory enabled the South African team to claim their first Test series win on Indian soil after a gap of 25 years, as well as to break the record for the biggest winning margin over India in Test cricket.
India’s problems were not limited to home series only; they have also been struggling overseas. The Indian team was defeated 3-1 in Australia during the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, winning their only match in Perth. They then lost another ODI series 1-2 to the same opponent in October. Under Gautam Gambhir’s coaching, the first assignment was a white-ball series in Sri Lanka which ended 0-2 in the ODI leg where India lost.