He is very one-sided...: Rishabh Pant on difference in working styles of Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid

Post the 2024 T20 World Cup win, Rahul Dravid's coaching tenure came to an end and he was succeeded by Gautam Gambhir. Under Gambhir, India's first assignment was a white-ball tour of Sri Lanka where the Men in Blue whitewashed the Lankansin theT20Is (3-0) but lost the three ODIs 2-0. Ahead of the ongoing Duleep Trophy, wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant -- who is representing India B in the domestic tournament -- spoke on the difference in working styles of former coach Dravid and his successor Gambhir.

'Dravid was very balanced, Gambhir is one-sided about the fact that you've to win'

Speaking on JioCinema, Pant said, "I feel Rahul bhai was very balanced as a human being and as a coach. It could be both good and bad. There are positives and negatives, and it depends on where individuals want to focus. Gauti bhai (Gambhir) is more aggressive, he's very one-sided about the fact that you have to win. But you need to find the right balance and improve."

Under Gambhir, India got off to a mediocre start but will look to make amends in their forthcoming home season, where they host Bangladesh for two Tests and New Zealand in athree-match Test series later. Soon after, India's litmus test will begin when they travel to Australia for a five-match Test series, i.e. the next edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, starting on Nov 22. It will be the biggest challenge for Gambhir since taking over as India's head coach.

Talking about Dravid, he took over as the India coach in late 2021 and served until the end of the 2024 T20 WC. He was initially set to end his term after the home ODI WC last year, however, he received a six-month extension. It proved to be a masterstroke as Dravid helped Rohit Sharma-led India end their 11-year-long ICC-title drought in the T20 WC, held in West Indies and USA.