indian cricket team

Ajinkya Rahane Gives Verdict on Future of Gautam Gambhir As India Coach After IND vs NZ ODI Series Loss

Chandra Moulee Das

Last updated: January 20, 2026

3 min read

While the Indian team managed to win the Champions Trophy 2025 and the Asia Cup 2025 under Gautam Gambhir as head coach, they have witnessed some shattering losses too. Following their latest 1-2 defeat in the three-match home ODI series against New Zealand, questions have been raised regarding the future of Gambhir.

There are two major ICC events lined up in two years, one where India will defend their T20 World Cup title this year followed by the 2027 ODI World Cup. However, the defeats under Gambhir and the shaky performances from the Men in Blue now beg the question if Gautam Gambhir is the right person to lead the team into the global tournaments.

Echoing on the same lines, India cricketer Ajinkya Rahane cited Gambhir’s mindset of making too many changes as one of the reasons for their loss against the Kiwis and that the Indian coach will now face heat for his tactics.

Rahane said while speaking on Cricbuzz, “There will be tough questions. India lost 5 ODIs in the last 9. Reason is because there are too many changes. That’s why I said, you are looking at 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.”

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Losses under Gautam Gambhir as head coach of India

Talking of home defeats, India suffered a 0-3 whitewash against the Kiwis in 2024 in Tests. Notably, this was India’s first whitewash at home in a three-Test contest. In the process, India’s record of remaining unbeaten in home Tests, spanning from 2012 where they had won 18 home Test series on the trot was also broken.

Again in 2025, India were handed a 0-2 defeat by the Proteas. With the win, South Africa registered their first Test series on Indian soil in 25 years while also setting a record for their biggest winning margin over India in Test cricket.

India’s struggles have continued on foreign soil too. During the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, the team succumbed to a 3-1 defeat, securing its only victory in Perth. This was followed by a 1-2 loss in ODI series against last October. In Gautam Gambhir’s inaugural assignment as head coach, a white-ball series in Sri Lanka, resulted in a 0-2 loss in the ODI leg.

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