Ponting suspects that Gambhir’s crack back at him about the recent struggles of Virat Kohli was partly devised to deflect pressure from a team that had just lost 3-0 at home to New Zealand. He expects more of the same this summer.

“[As with] any leader or leadership role around international teams, they are the one who has got to take some bullets sometimes,” Ponting said. “You’re the one who has to sit there in front of the media when you’ve lost. Quite often when you win it’ll be the players who get to talk about it.

“Let’s not forget this little prickly thing that happened between him and I was off the back of them losing that series 3-0. Straight away he would’ve had his defences up, [and] then I say something that didn’t thrill him that much, but you’d expect it to be that way when you understand his character.

“If he’s under pressure, if India aren’t playing well during the summer, and he feels a bit under pressure, I think a lot of his responses will be a little bit similar to the way he was the other day.”

India have, so far, been jumping at shadows around the training ground, going to extravagant lengths to minimise media access to the nets and having nothing to say publicly. On Wednesday, a planned conference with the spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was switched at the last moment for bowling coach Morne Morkel.

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In all this Gambhir’s protective side can be seen – something that grew largely out of his background in a Delhi domestic system that he felt placed too much pressure on young players.

“There has been a culture in Delhi cricket about making players insecure,” Gambhir said in 2017. “I have, myself, faced that when I was a youngster. When I got into the Ranji Trophy team, I was made to feel insecure. Then only I had decided, if I ever take charge, I will never make young boys feel insecure.”

Gambhir must also contend with a clear generation gap in the team, in particular between the venerated trio of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma (when he joins the tour) and Jasprit Bumrah, and the younger brigade led by Rishabh Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal. This is a team in transition, but from a country where senior players have always ruled the roost.

What is unknown before the series begins is how much that protective side will battle with the pugilistic streak that once saw Gambhir suspended for a Test match for elbowing Shane Watson, and engaging in numerous heated on-field confrontations with Kohli in the IPL.

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Tim Paine, who by his own admission lost composure at the pointy end of the 2020-21 series as Australian captain, has his doubts.

“[In] their last two series wins out here they had Ravi Shastri who was fantastic,” Paine told SEN Radio this week. “He created a great environment, the players were energised, they played with passion, he sold them the dream and motivated them in a really light-hearted enjoyable way,

“They have gone to a new coach now that is really prickly, really competitive – and that not to say that’s not a good thing and a good way to coach – but my concern is that it’s not a great fit for the Indian cricket team.

“If your coach is the first one to crack in a press conference after being asked a simple question, it could be a really long summer for Gautam Gambhir if India don’t get off to a good start on Perth.”

Gambhir sought Langer out to help him with his batting at the back end of his Test career. It remains to be seen what Gambhir will take from the lessons of India’s past two Australian visits.

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