India’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, has said that New Zealand outplayed India at home in the recent series. Addressing the media before the team’s departure to Australia, Gambhir also downplayed the criticism he received on social media following the whitewash as well.
“What difference does it make in my life and for anyone’s life?” Gambhir said on the social media criticism. “When I took up this job, I always thought that it’s going to be a highly difficult job and a highly prestigious job as well. Honestly, I don’t think as if I’m feeling the heat because my job is to be absolutely honest and there are some incredibly tough people in that dressing room who have achieved some great things for the country and will continue to achieve some great things for the country. So it’s an absolute honour to be coaching them and coaching India.”
He again said, “Obviously the learnings is that we accept that we were outplayed. I’m not going to sit here and defend. I think we were outplayed in all the three departments. They were more professional and we accept that. And I think the criticism what we are receiving, I think we take it with both hands. And we keep moving forward, keep getting better every day. Three Test matches before we had an incredible Test match in Kanpur as well. I know that we haven’t played our best cricket, but it doesn’t change anything. Australia is a new series, Australia is a new opponent. And we go out there thinking that we’re going to definitely try and win the series.”
On Rohit Sharma’s availability for the first Test in Perth, Gautam Gambhir shared that there was still no confirmation but he backed KL Rahul or Abhimanyu Easwaran to open if needed.
“Obviously there is [Abhimanyu] Easwaran there, there is KL [Rahul] there,” he added. “So we will take a call closer to the first Test match if Rohit is not available. There are options there. It’s not that there are no options, there are quite a lot of options in the squad. So once it gets closer to the first Test match, we’ll try and play the best playing XI who is going to do the job for us.”
Gambhir also brushed aside concerns surrounding the form of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma as well.
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“I’ve got no concerns whatsoever for Virat and Rohit, I think they are incredibly tough men,” he added. “They’ve achieved a lot for Indian cricket and they will continue to achieve a lot in future as well. I think for me, the most important thing is that they still work really hard and they’re still passionate. They still want to achieve a lot more. And that is something which is very important. The hunger in that dressing room is incredibly important for me and for the entire group of people as well in that dressing room. And I feel there’s a lot of hunger, especially after what has happened in the last series.”
With the change in conditions posing a hurdle, Gautam Gambhir backed the team to adapt because the experienced campaigners have toured the country several times while also highlighting the nine-day break between the first and second Test to prepare for the pink-ball D/N game will be helpful.
“When you play back home in India as compared to when you play in Australia, obviously the conditions are completely different,” he observed. “So that is one of the challenges which we all feel, be it the support staff or be it the players as well. And I think 10 days, if we can get good, proper preparation before the start of the series, I think we’re going to be in really good shape. And we’ve got a lot of experienced players who’ve been to Australia a lot many times. So obviously their experience will come in handy for the young players as well. So I’m sure these 10 days are going to be very crucial.”
“I think we’ve got nine days before the pink ball Test match and we’ve got a two-day practice game against I think Prime Minister Eleven. So I think there’s got to be enough time for us to prepare for the pink ball Test match and it’s going to be exciting. I think that is something which a lot of people actually look forward to because it’s a new thing and obviously it’s a great venue to play the pink ball Test match as well,” he said.
“I think that is the quality of the man that he can actually bat at the top of the order, he can bat at number three and he can actually bat at number six as well,” Gautam Gambhir concluded. “So you need quite a lot of talent to be doing these kind of jobs as well. And he’s kept wickets in one day format as well. So imagine how many countries have players like KL, who can actually open the batting and can bat at number six as well. So I feel that if needed be, I think he can do the job for us, especially if Rohit is not available for the first Test match.”
