‘We won't take any decision on Gautam Gambhir, will speak to selectors and team’: BCCI official after India's loss

BCCI will not take immediate action regarding head coach Gautam Gambhir after India's recent Test defeats, a senior official stated.

A day after Gautam Gambhir said it is up to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to decide his fate after India’s second home Test whitewash in 12 months, the board made it clear that no immediate action will be taken against head coach or the current playing group. A senior BCCI official told The Indian Express that the board will not be making any decisions on Gambhir’s future before the upcoming World Cups, insisting that the team remains in a “transition phase.”

India's coach Gautam Gambhir during a training session(PTI)

“It is up to the BCCI to decide. I said it in my first press conference when I took over as the head coach that Indian cricket is important; I am not. And I sit here sticking by the same thing...” Gambhir said on Wednesday before going on to add that he was the same coach under whom India won the Champions Trophy, drew the Test series in England and won the Asia Cup.

India’s 2–0 defeat to South Africa marked the team’s third Test series loss in a year under Gambhir, following previous setbacks against New Zealand at home and Australia away. After losing to New Zealand 3-0 at home last year, India were blanked by South Africa 0-2. The only Test series wins at home under Gambhir's tenure have come against Bangladesh and the West Indies. BCCI, however, opted for continuity over sweeping changes, even as scrutiny grows over the team’s tactics, selection calls, and inability to post competitive totals in the two-Test series.

“The BCCI will not rush in taking any decision, the team is in a transition phase,” the BCCI official said. “As far as coach Gautam Gambhir is concerned, we will not take any decision on him as the World Cup is around the corner and his contract is till the 2027 World Cup. The BCCI will speak to selectors and team management going ahead but there won’t be any knee-jerk action.”

Despite a strong series against England earlier this year and a win over West Indies, the latest defeat has sparked questions about India’s long-term planning. Much of the criticism has centred around tactical calls, particularly the reshuffling of Washington Sundar’s batting position and the insistence on spin-heavy pitches that backfired as India failed to register a single century.

Gambhir, who fronted the media after the Guwahati defeat, defended the squad but acknowledged repeated batting collapses—especially the slide from 95 for 1 to 120 for 7 in the first innings of the second Test—as key turning points. He took full responsibility, saying, “Everyone in that dressing room—and it starts with me—is accountable.”

While the BCCI is expected to hold discussions with selectors and team management once the South Africa series formally concludes, officials confirmed that the same group of players is likely to continue, with no major personnel changes planned for the immediate future.