'Emotional coach is not a good thing to have...': AB de Villiers' blunt take on Gautam Gambhir's coaching as India suffer Test series whitewash vs South Africa

India head coach Gautam Gambhir is currently facing a lot of criticism after the team suffered a series whitewash against South Africa in the two-Test match series of the Freedom Trophy. Notably, this happened for the second time under coach Gambhir's tenure that a team whitewashed India in a Test series on Indian soil after the New Zealand debacle last year.

AB de Villiers on Gautam Gambhir's coaching

After India's defeat in the second Test match at ACA Stadium in Guwahati, Plenty of former players and pundits have been quite critical of Gambhir’s coaching style and tactics. Former South African cricketer Ab de Villiers gave his view on the same as well.

“Speaking on behalf of the Indian side, it’s really difficult. I don’t know what GG is like when it comes to leadership. I’ve known him as an emotional player and if that is the case in the change room, generally an emotional coach is not a good thing to have. But it’s not to say he’s that kind of a coach and the kind of leader behind the scenes. There’s no right and wrong. Some players will feel comfortable with a former player. Some players will be comfortable with a coach that’s never played the game before but he’s got a lot of years of experience of coaching the game,” De Villiers said on R Ashwin’s YouTube channel.

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“It’s a tough question because I’ve never played under Shukri and I’ve never been in the Indian dressing room with GG, Morne Morkel and Ryan ten Doeschate. It looks great on paper but I don’t know what the dynamic is like behind the scenes. What I can say is it is different for every player,” De Villiers added.

I absolutely love playing under Gary Kirsten; he’s a former player and similar to Gautam Gambhir. Some players might find confidence and feel comfortable with a former player being there, a great of the game and find some extra inspiration to put extra yards for the team and for the coach,” he said.

After India's defeat against South Africa, Gambhir took the responsibility for the defeat, but also defended his position, claiming that he was there with the team when India won the ICC Champions Trophy earlier this year.

Gambhir's upcoming assignment

Gautam Gambhir's upcoming assignment will be India's upcoming white ball series against South Africa. The Men in Blue will face the Proteas for a three-match ODI series, followed by a five-match T20I series, which is scheduled to start from November 30.