A second series loss raises more questions than answers as head coach Gautam Gambhir’s performance comes under the lens
Sydney: It doesn’t take a lot of get Gautam Gambhir angry. It never has. Even as a player, he was quick to lose his temper and his intensity could often prove to be hard to handle. It didn’t necessarily make him a bad player, but his presence in the dressing room often came with caveats.
India’s team head coach Gautam Gambhir (C) looks on during a warm up session on day three of the fifth and final cricket Test match between Australia and India at the Sydney Cricket Ground on January 5, 2025. (Photo by Saeed KHAN / AFP) / — IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE – STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE — (AFP)
It was also one of the reasons why many were unsure about him as Team Indi coach. For starters, he had no real experience. And it is one thing to be a mentor in the Indian Premier League and quite another to handle the best players in India against the best in the world. Would his confrontational, always-on-attack attitude help?
In the short run, it hasn’t. India are in a tough space and the results over the last six months have been disappointing, to say the least. They lost the ODI series against Sri Lanka (2-0), then the home Test series against New Zealand (3-0) — the first home series loss in 12 years – and the Border Gavaskar Trophy after losing the series 3-1. Australia beat India in a series for the first time in a decade. This is a sign of things starting to spiral out of control.
So, it wasn’t really a surprise that in India’s final press conference in Australia on Sunday, head coach Gambhir was an angry man. He was gruff, flippant, not even listening to the entire question before launching into a tirade.
To his credit, he spoke about many things — his views on the future of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, the reasons for the series defeat, Jasprit Bumrah, tough men, tough cricket and how he will be the first to accept the team’s mistakes. A common refrain through all these answers was: “As simple as it can get.”
Then again, maybe the questions are simple because they are so obvious. But the answers, that’s a different matter altogether.
The two most senior batters are struggling, the most senior spinner (R Ashwin) has retired — so home Tests will have a different feel – the pace attack is over-reliant on the genius of Bumrah and the youngsters (barring a couple) haven’t found their feet. This is where Gambhir’s role will be crucial. But if he doesn’t get it right soon, there is already talk in the BCCI offices that he could be gone.
What next for seniors?
He has to find the right balance between giving opportunities to youngsters and keeping the seniors in fine fettle, if possible, given that a tough Test tour of England could push India further down the hole. But mostly, he needs to do it without getting too intense or losing his cool. His predecessors Ravi Shastri and Rahul Dravid were especially good at this. They knew how to motivate the seniors and keep them at a high level. Gambhir clearly hasn’t been able to communicate that.
Bumrah’s backup?
It’s clear that Mohammed Siraj has the heart but his performances haven’t been good enough from the wickets point of view. And isn’t that what Bumrah needs the most? When Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami were fit and firing, India were pretty unstoppable. The pressure was relentless and there were no loose deliveries. That is something bowling coach Morne Morkel has to instil in the young group. With many of them focussing on white-ball cricket, will they ever master the longer formats?
Domestic cricket
In the post-match presser, Gambhir said he wanted everyone to play as many red-ball games as possible. That includes players turning up to play Ranji Trophy. He believes that this is where talent for the red-ball game can be found and nurtured. But can Gambhir explain why Abhimanyu Easwaran, for all his first-class experience, was a mere tourist. The same is true of Sarfaraz Khan. Why get them if you aren’t going to use them even when all your top batters are failing. Instead, when there was an opportunity to play an extra batter, the team went with Washington Sundar.
What is GG’s real vision?
The performance of the coaching staff must be reviewed, but that is only likely to happen around the time of the Special General Meeting on January 12. Gambhir’s plans have been confusing, and in Australia they seemed to be changing radically with every match. Playing six bowlers was an overkill and India could have certainly gone with an extra batter on the spicy SCG track. Even from a bowling point-of-view, the signals are mixed. Six Test match losses in eight games is troubling, to say the least. He may get white-ball cricket, but are his Test credentials up to match?
