Gautam Gambhir "Could Pick...": India Coach's Mentor Names Forgotten Pacer For Surprise Call-up

Newly-appointed India head coach Gautam Gambhir has the ability to derive the best out of players when the chips are down, and his affinity to take up challenges head on can make winning a habit for the national team, feels his childhood coach Sanjay Bharadwaj. Gambhir, the World Cup-winning former opener, was given the reins of the India team on Tuesday. He replaced Rahul Dravid, whose tenure ended with the country's title win in the T20 World Cup in Barbados last month.

"Gautam has the quality to bring the best out of his players. The job of a top coach is precisely that. Gauti knows his players well and can bring the best out of them, using them effectively.

"I feel, as a coach, he has the capability to take India to the pinnacle. He can do the job honestly without any bias and bring the best to Indian cricket. The (ODI) World Cup title which has eluded us for the last 13 years would now start coming," Bhardwaj told PTI Videos on Wednesday.

Bharadwaj, who has also produced India cricketers such as Amit Mishra, Unmukt Chand and Nitish Rana besides several Ranji players from Delhi, added that Gambhir has the ability to take up any challenge and succeed in his endeavour.

"He always played with a challenge. Since he was 10, he had the winner's mentality. He always played to win. He never thought that he could lose a match. He was never in doubt.

"Gauti always had a sharp and astute observation power. Gautam has the ability to take up any challenge and then succeed in it," the veteran coach said about Gambhir, who played a crucial role in India lifting the ODI World Cup in 2011 under Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Bharadwaj added that Gambhir had predicted Rohit Sharma's resurgence when the India captain was going through a lean