Gambhir wants ‘greatest team man’ Ryan ten Doeschate for India coaching role: Report
"The most selfless human being, someone I can take a bullet for, someone who I can trust for life," Gambhir on Ten Doeschate
Ryan ten Doeschate. File photo: BCCI/IPL
Indian cricket team’s new head coach Gautam Gambhir is pushing for a foreigner’s inclusion among his support staff and the BCCI is yet to decide on this, according to a media report on Thursday (July 11).
In recent times, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has picked Indians in the coaching staff for the national teams – both men and women.
Now, if Gambhir has his say, the Indian team could have former Netherlands player Ryan ten Doeschate as the head coach’s assistant. Ten Doeschate has played for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and later was part of the coaching staff at the franchise.
When KKR won the IPL 2024 trophy, Gambhir was the team’s mentor and Ten Doeschate served as the franchise’s fielding coach. He is also part of the coaching staff in KKR’s franchise teams in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), Major League Cricket (MLC), and ILT20.
According to a report in Cricbuzz, “Gambhir, who has requested a free hand in managing the team, wants the 44-year-old former Dutch international as one of his associates.”
In a 'Knights Unplugged' video shot last year during a KKR function, Gambhir was seen praising Ten Doeschate as “greatest team man I ever played with” and “most selfless human being, someone I can take a bullet for”.
“When I talk about selflessness, I have never said this in 42 years of my career. And I wanted to say this. The greatest team man I have ever played with, the most selfless human being, someone I can take a bullet for, someone who I can trust for life
“I can tell you this because in 2011, my first game as a KKR captain, we only had four overseas (players) available. And this man had a fabulous 50-over World Cup. And we went in that game with only three overseas players. And, he was carrying drinks in that game with no disappointment on his face. He taught me selflessness. Ryan ten Doeschate. They are the people who made me the leader (sic),” Gambhir said in the video which has gone viral now.