Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) head coach Chandrakant Pandit congratulated Gautam Gambhir on being appointed Team India head coach.

Following Gambhir’s appointment as Team India’s head coach, Pandit messaged him over the phone to congratulate him on getting the prestigious role. He also wished the former KKR mentor well for the role.

“We’re extremely elated with Gambhir being appointed as the head coach of the Indian cricket team. I’m sure he will do a wonderful job, as he has been doing over the last few years,” Pandit told Mid-Day.

“Yesterday, I messaged him, congratulated him. It’s a prestigious job and a prestigious role he is going to play for our country. Obviously, I was very happy to message him. He also messaged me back,” revealed Pandit.

The pair of Gambhir and Pandit had guided KKR to their third triumph in the IPL 2024. There were reports suggesting that Gambhir wants his former KKR coaching staffs Ryan Ten Doeschate and Abhishek Nayar among his Team India coaching staffs. To which Pandit said that it will be excellent if the KKR assistant coach gets the role.

“He (Nayar) has also done a great job with KKR for the last few years. He was equally valued to us. If someone gets the opportunity to excel in their career, one should be happy about that,” Pandit said.

Gambhir will assume his position during Team India’s tour of Sri Lanka, slated to get underway on July 27. The first major assignment for the newly appointed Team India head coach will be the ICC Champions Trophy in 2025 which will be followed by the T20 World Cup in 2026 where the national team will defend their title.