Gautam Gambhir's dream 2024...

On May 26, 2024, Gautam Gambhir was celebrating his first IPL title as part of the Kolkata Knight Riders' backroom staff, and his third with the franchise overall. As the mentor of the side, he had contributed to one of the most dominant league seasons in the tournament's history. On the night of the IPL final, the former India opener was said to have been involved in discussions with then-BCCI secretary Jay Shah about taking over from Rahul Dravid at the the end of the T20 World Cup in June.

A report at the time stated that the sentiment around the BCCI was one of "desh ke liye karna hai" (we must do it for the country). Provided this is true – it is not hard to believe – such a nationalistic bent of mind would have appealed to Gambhir, who has been on record as saying the Indian army remains his first love, and would have been his career path if not for cricket.

Gambhir had already given up his role as a Member of Parliament (MP) as part of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in March this year. It was also clear from a social media post soon after his appointment that he saw his new role as a form of service to the nation.

...and Gautam Gambhir's nightmare 2024

All the signs pointed to this being a dream job for Gambhir. But fast forward about six months, and he is now living as close to a nightmare as possible.

India travelled to Sri Lanka for his first assignment, and lost an ODI series to their island neighbours for the first time in 27 years. They clean swept Bangladesh across two Tests and three T20Is soon after.

But since October 16, India have won just one game out of seven with him in the dugout, losing a home Test series for the first time in 12 years and being whitewashed at home for the first time ever in a three-match series. Their three T20I wins in South Africa were overseen by VVS Laxman.

Read more: A captain dropping himself? It helped Sri Lanka win a World T20 title

Results have not been the only low point for Gambhir though. His credentials as a red-ball coach have consistently been questioned, given his only experience prior to this role was as a mentor in the IPL – Chandrakant Pandit was KKR's head coach and previously at Lucknow Super Giants, Gambhir was the mentor alongside coach Andy Flower.

The backroom staff he has hired – Abhishek Nayar, Morne Morkel and Ryan ten Doeschate – also have limited coaching experience and while the significance of that can be debated, it is the sort of thing that tends to be highlighted after poor results. The handling of R Ashwin's retirement has also been a bone of contention, with the veteran off spinner retiring midway through the current series.

New year, new headaches

On Wednesday (January 1), Gambhir's New Year was made decidedly not happy – multiple Indian Express reports outlined dressing room conversations, in which the coach is said to have told his players, "Bahut ho gaya" (I've had enough), shortly after India's capitulation in which they lost seven wickets in the final session to lose the Boxing Day Test to Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

That hasn't been all though, with the reports claiming that an unnamed senior player has put his hand up as a potential interim captain to take over from Rohit Sharma, and that Gambhir had wanted to select Cheteshwar Pujara for the ongoing tour, only to be shot down by the national selectors.

Also read: Highest ICC rating for Indian bowlers, full list: Jasprit Bumrah sets new Test record

The aforementioned reports also say that the head coach has "let the team do what it wanted for the 'last six months'", and that there has been a disconnect between team and individual plans.

Things have not gotten any better for him throughout today though, with a Press Trust of India (PTI) report later in the day claiming a senior BCCI official disclosed that VVS Laxman was the board's first choice as head coach, and that Gambhir was a "compromise".

India have one Test remaining in their ongoing series, likely making the emergence of such reports inconvenient for Gambhir and the team as a whole, as they still have a chance to win in Sydney, draw the series and retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy – which has been in their grasp since 2016-17.

What does the future look like for Gambhir?

The head coach's immediate headache on the field is whether to take the call to drop one or both of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma for the next Test, who have underperformed severely with the bat on this tour. Rohit commands a place in the side as skipper, and Kohli thanks to the weight of his career record, and stellar previous exploits in Australia.

After the first Test of this series, India debutant Nitish Kumar Reddy revealed he had been told by Gambhir to treat hostile, short-pitched bowling, as if he was "taking a bullet for the country". But for all his grand statements stoking nationalistic fervour, he has yet to front up to the press before or after a match. Nayar, Morkel, ten Doeschate, Rohit and several other players have been cast into the spotlight.

Given the murky nature of non-specific reports, it is not easy to say from the outside how much blame for India's current state can be placed at Gambhir's door.

Indeed, selections of players like Reddy, and the recall of Washington Sundar, have largely been attributed to him – and have been quite successful. Rohit Sharma's leadership on the field has also come under the scanner, with a running joke on social media pointing out that India's only win in the last seven Tests came when Jasprit Bumrah captained the side in Perth in his absence.

But ultimately, when someone as passionate and polarising as Gambhir takes up a high-pressure role like this one, the spotlight can be disproportionate. In addition, he and his coaching staff are the major changes to the team in this calendar year, which was more or less purring for the first half of it.

Whether he likes it or not (and given his previous statements, he might), Gautam Gambhir is in a war now. Can he hold it all together, or is it only a matter of time before his tenure blows up in his face?

Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.