NEW DELHI: Head coach Gautam Gambhir, who has come under intense scrutiny following India's two home Test series whitewashes under his tenure, found some words of solace from South Africa captain Temba Bavuma. Bavuma's team dealt India a heavy blow, inflicting a 2-0 defeat in the Test series in November last year.

Bavuma believes that India's struggles in red-ball cricket should not be seen as a crisis, but rather as a natural phase of transition - one that requires patience instead of panic.

"When it comes to the red-ball stuff, India are definitely a team in transition. There is nothing unique about where India find themselves in Test cricket. India coach Gautam Gambhir has a lot of pressure on his shoulders, and I think he is going to have to take it as it comes. He is going to have to find a way to buy himself time in the red-ball game, and I'm of the view that the performances in white-ball cricket may assist him," Bavuma wrote in his column for ESPNCricinfo.

Bavuma highlighted that India's strong pool of players in the limited-overs formats could give Gambhir some much-needed room to navigate the challenges in red-ball cricket.

"In limited-overs cricket, India have a lot of resources from which to select. The 2026 T20 World Cup is also in their favour, as it will be on home ground, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka in February-March. In ODIs, Kohli and Rohit will naturally take on a lot more responsibility from a performance and leadership point of view. So I think Gambhir will be okay in terms of his position. However, from a red-ball point of view, it's going to be tough for this Indian team in the near future."

"Some may speak more to the narrative that Gambhir should perhaps carry on with the white-ball stuff and let someone else fulfil the Test cricket duties. Splitting the red- and white-ball coaching roles was something we gave a go within the Proteas set-up back in 2023," he said.

"At the time there was sense behind the split rule. But now having one coach across all formats works a lot better for players from a continuity point of view. Moreover, it's advantageous from a philosophy and playing style point of view. I don't think a lot of teams are going with the split-format system anymore, and to be honest, I'm not really in favour of that rule. If anything, it just confuses the players, because in one format a certain type of language is spoken and then in another format, a couple of weeks later, you need to adjust. Gambhir's contract runs through to the 2027 ODI World Cup and India just need to back him."

"In terms of the way Gambhir controls his current group of Test players, I think it would be best to be clear and say: 'Guys, it's going to be a tough few months on away tours but let's focus on the long term.' But he is going to have to back his horses and, at some point, those horses are going to have to exit their pens and gallop for him," Bavuma added.