Former India batter turned commentator Mohammad Kaif has weighed in on head coach Gautam Gambhir’s comments regarding Team India’s ODI series loss to Australia. After losing the first two matches of the three-game series, the team bounced back in the final match in Sydney, with Rohit Sharma (121*) and Virat Kohli (74*) playing brilliantly to secure a nine-wicket consolation win while chasing 237.

In a video released by the BCCI on November 10, Gambhir said, “I’ve always been a believer that it is not about the individual performances. Yes, I can be happy with the individual performances, and I will always remain happy with individual performances, but ultimately, we lost the ODI series. That is the bottom line. I can never celebrate a series loss as a coach. As a player, I can appreciate individuals, but as a coach, it is my moral responsibility that we as a nation, and we as individuals, should never celebrate a series loss.”

However, Kaif slammed the trolls and said, “There should be respect for a score of 100, right? Respect for a century and for match-winning knocks should always be there. Even if Gautam didn’t celebrate, people still did. Virat Kohli remained unbeaten, Rohit Sharma scored a century, and they avoided a whitewash. Yes, they lost the series, but at least they were not whitewashed. You see, in India, the reaction and treatment after a whitewash would have been very different. By winning that ODI, they saved their pride. Ending with a win and avoiding a whitewash gave them momentum heading into the next T20 series. So just saying that they lost the series doesn’t tell the full story, because they finished on a winning note. Avoiding a whitewash made a big difference. Going into the T20s after a win is completely different from entering under the pressure of a whitewash.”

Meanwhile, Gautam Gambhir will next be in the seen as India host South Africa for a two-match Test series, beginning November 14 in Kolkata as well.