IND vs WI 2025: "I'm still aggressive but now I think there are kids at home" - Gautam Gambhir

Published - 10 Oct 2025, 14:27 IST | Updated - 10 Oct 2025, 14:47 IST

India's head coach Gautam Gambhir admitted that despite being 43 years old, he doesn't shy away from getting into an altercation. During his playing days, Gambhir was involved in some ugly spats with the likes of Shahid Afridi, Shane Watson, and even compatriot Virat Kohli.

From the beginning of his career, Gambhir has been known as someone who calls a spade a spade. He doesn't mince words while making his point. Also, he doesn't take harsh words about his team or the players lightly. While Gambhir believes that his natural instinct is to take the fight on, the thought about him having kids back home also crosses his mind.

"I'm still aggressive, but there is one change now. Whenever I try to be – that first instinct is still pretty much there – but my first reaction is to take on the fight. But somewhere, with age, the first thing that comes to mind is 'Ghar pe bachhe hain' (There are kids at home)," Gambhir said on the most recent episode of 'Home town Hero' that aired during Day 1 of the India vs West Indies Test at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.

Gambhir has been receiving criticism from a section of fans, who are blaming him for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's abrupt retirements from Test cricket earlier this year. However, the former Kolkata Knight Riders captain isn't too perturbed by the outside noise as he is focusing on taking Indian cricket to new heights.

Gambhir is currently with the Indian team, which is looking to secure their first series win in the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle 2025-2027. The Shubman Gill-led side won the first Test at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad last week. The second Test is being played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium with the series being on the line.

India started the WTC cycle with a 2-2 draw in a five-Test series against England. A clean sweep over the West Indies will give crucial points to the Asian giants, who are third in the standings behind Australia and Sri Lanka. After making it to the WTC final in the first two editions, India misses out this year, as South Africa beat Australia to lift the coveted title.