Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan praised head coach Gautam Gambhir after India’s historic triumph in the T20 World Cup 2026. India bested New Zealand in the summit clash by a comprehensive margin of 96 runs at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, on Sunday.
Pathan praised Gambhir for sticking to his guns despite the outside pressure. The former swing bowler said the head coach kept moving forward with his vision and played a key role in getting the best out of his players.
Pathan said on his YouTube Channel, “Gautam Gambhir faced a lot of criticism. It was not easy, and at times it even felt unnecessary. But the way he handled himself and kept moving forward with his vision was impressive, even when many things seemed to be going against him. Credit must go to him as well. Of course, the players deserve full credit for the way they played, but managing them, showing strong man-management skills, and bringing the best out of them was equally important.”
The 2007 T20 World Cup final hero praised Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir for working as a team in the T20I showpiece.
He added, “It was often seen that Surya kept communicating with Gautam Gambhir through signals from the field. Even today, during the powerplay when Bumrah had bowled one over, Surya signaled to Gautam about giving him another over. Bumrah eventually bowled two overs in the powerplay. This was not a one-time incident; such communication was seen regularly.
“So very well done Gautam Gambhir, and very well done Suryakumar Yadav as the leader. The way they managed and guided this team has been outstanding. India has won another trophy and has now become world champion three times. So well done, Team India,” he added.
Pathan praised SKY and Gambhir for preparing batters for different roles by continuously changing their batting positions.
“This combination of Suryakumar Yadav and coach Gautam Gambhir has been remarkable. Both of them faced a lot of criticism, there is no doubt about that. They were criticized heavily. But before the World Cup, Surya and Gambhir kept making many changes, especially regarding batting positions. They repeatedly told the players to always be ready to perform different roles. That became the biggest identity of this team. The players were ready to bat in different positions.”
Gambhir and SKY deserve a lot of credit for taking India to glory and they would look to carry the good show.
