MS Dhoni next India coach? Gautam Gambhir's role reversal wish after Instagram exchange

Indian men's cricket team head coach Gautam Gambhir on Monday reflected on his brief social media exchange with his former national teammate MS Dhoni after the T20 World Cup victory in Ahmedabad.

Dhoni had posted a message on Instagram congratulating the team after the title win. Gambhir, who played under Dhoni’s captaincy for a large part of his international career, later responded to the post. Dhoni had returned to Instagram with an update for the first time in almost two years and also joked about Gambhir’s serious image.




Speaking about the exchange a week after the final, Gambhir said he appreciated Dhoni’s message and hoped to return the gesture one day.

"Good on him [Dhoni] to come and watch the World Cup final. Good on him to ask me to smile, and I wish one day he could be in my position (coach), and I can write the same thing, and hopefully, he can smile from the dugout," said Gambhir while speaking at a RevSportz event on Monday.



Dhoni, who led India to the T20 World Cup title in the inaugural edition in 2007, wrote on Instagram after India's T20 World Cup 2026 win on March 7, "History gets created at Ahmedabad, big congratulations to the team and support staff and to all the fans of Indian Cricket Team worldwide. Such a pleasure to see all of you play."

"Coach Sahab smile looks great on you, intensity with smile is a killer combo, very well done. Enjoy guys," Dhoni added in the post.

Hours later, Gambhir responded under the post: "And what a reason to smile, great seeing you!"

While Gambhir will head into a break for two months, the 44-year-old Dhoni will suit up to play the IPL 2026 season for Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

Gambhir also said he would relish the opportunity to be associated with cricket's return to the Olympic Games. With cricket set to mark its return to the Olympics with the LA 2028 Games, Gambhir said it would be a "huge honour" to be a part of the Games and represent India.

"I would love to be part of the Olympics. It's a huge honour. Very few get the honour of representing India at the Olympics," said Gautam Gambhir.

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