In response to criticism of Gautam Gambhir’s methods, Kapil Dev, India’s first World Cup-winning captain, claims that a modern head coach’s job is more about “managing” players than truly coaching them.
Gambhir has faced criticism as India’s head coach following the country’s 0-2 Test series loss to South Africa. His strategy of constantly rotating players and depending on part-timers has drawn criticism.
According to Kapil, the word “coach” is frequently misinterpreted in modern cricket.
“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,” Kapil said, at the Indian Chamber of Commerce ICC Centenary Session in Kolkata on Thursday.
“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,” he added.
Kapil said, “How can you be a coach when they have given a name to… let’s say anybody, a leg spinner? How can Gautam be a coach to a leg spinner or to the wicketkeeper?
“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. How can my manager or captain 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.”
As captain, Kapil stated that he supported players who were going through a difficult time.
“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.
“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.”
