Gambhir’s time as the India head coach has so far been quite disappointing. Under his guidance, the Men in Blue suffered a defeat in the ODI series against Sri Lanka and also slumped to a humiliating 0-3 Test series defeat at home to New Zealand.

The Border-Gavaskar Trophy loss led to more criticism for Gambhir with Tiwary saying that he has not shown the kind of coaching that was expected.

“Gautam Gambhir is a hypocrite. He doesn’t do what he says. The captain (Rohit) is from Mumbai, Abhishek Nayar is from Mumbai. Rohit has been pushed to the forefront. There is no one to speak for Jalaj Saxena. He performs well but keeps quiet,” Tiwary told News18Bangla.

“What is the use of a bowling coach? Whatever the coach says, he will agree. Morne Morkel came from Lucknow Super Giants. Abhishek Nayar was at Kolkata Knight Riders with Gambhir and the Indian head coach knows that he will not go against his instructions,” Tiwary added.

Tiwary also believes that Gambhir doesn’t have a good relationship with skipper Rohit Sharma. He also questioned as to how the duo will work together by comparing their achievements and saying that while Rohit is a World Cup-winning captain, Gambhir’s feats as captain are restricted to the IPL.

“How will they work together? Rohit is a World Cup-winning captain while Gambhir led KKR to IPL titles both as a captain and mentor. Gambhir didn’t guide KKR to the title single-handedly as we all performed as a unit. Jacques Kallis, Sunil Narine and I, all contributed to the cause. But who took the credit? There is an environment and PR that allows him to take all the credit,” Tiwary said.

The post ‘Gautam Gambhir is a hypocrite’: Ex-India star BLASTS head coach following Australia series defeat appeared first on Cricket Country.

This report comes after several former India cricketers urged the star India batter to play domestic cricket in order to regain his form in Tests. Even head coach Gautam Gambhir also hinted that not only Virat but Rohit should also play domestic cricket since he also needs to drastically improve his form in the longest format.

If RCB reaches the final of the IPL which will be played on May 25, then Kohli will have roughly 14 days to play county cricket and get suitable with the English conditions before the 5-match Test series against The Three Lions commences.

Preparing for the swinging conditions in England will not be an easy task and Kohli himself knows that. The India batter has struggled in the past few Test series in England and the same would happen in the upcoming tour as well if he doesn’t take strict measures to improve his form.

Kohli had a brilliant start to the Border-Gavaskar series, slamming a century in the first Test held in Perth. However, his form dipped in the very next match and didn’t show much improvements in the remaining 3 Tests as well.

The 36-year-old will be looking to put the failures in Australia tour behind him and a stint in County Cricket can turn out to be very helpful for him in regaining his form. Spending time in English conditions would allow Kohli to sharpen his skills and also regain his confidence.

The post Virat Kohli likely to play county cricket in order to prepare for England Test series: Report appeared first on Cricket Country.

Senior players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli came under a lot of criticism following the conclusion of the Australia tour, however many fingers were also pointed towards the younger stars. One such star is batter Shubman Gill, who had a dismal Border-Gavaskar series and failed to impress at all.

In the 3 Tests that Gill played in Australia during the 5-match series, he could only muster 93 runs from 5 innings at an average of 18.60. These numbers don’t do justice to his potential.

Seeing these poor performances, former India star Subramaniam Badrinath went on to claim that Gill would have been dropped already if he hailed from South India.

“If Shubman Gill was named perhaps, let’s take my father’s name, as Subramaniam, then he would have been dropped. This is difficult for me to watch again (Gill’s wicket) because he really has not lived up to his expectations,” Badrinath said on Star Sports Tamil.

“There’s nothing wrong with losing your wicket, you can get runs or you can’t sometimes, but there should be some intent, there should be some attitude,” Badrinath said. “I want you to play to tire the bowlers, I want you to make the ball old. If nothing else, at least help out your teammate who’s coming in after you to bat but standing at the crease with him, even if you can’t score runs. Play 50 balls, 100 balls, just make sure the ball gets worn out and old. These are the contributions you make for a team,” Badrinath added.

“You can’t go in and say ‘This is my game, this I how I play, this is how I bat’ and just play aesthetically pleasing cricket but not produce (runs). That’s not cricket. It’s about knowing whatever you can do and trying to do that in the moment. I just did not see any of that in Shubman Gill through the series this time,” Badrinath further added.

Badrinath also slammed Gill for his fielding and questioned about his contribution towards the Indian team.

“He (Gill) was poor even on the field, as someone who can’t stand at slips or point, nor is he exceptional at silly point as well. So, what does he contribute to the team? This is the question that keeps running in my mind about Gill,” Badrinath said.

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According to a report by The Times of India, Rohit Sharma is set to captain the Men in Blue while the vice-captaincy duty will reportedly be handed to pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah if he recovers in time for the ICC event.

Though there were no surprises about the captaincy position as Rohit also lead India in the 3 ODI’s that they played in 2024, it was the vice-captaincy position which sparked many debates.

Hardik Pandya was usually the vice-captain in the one-day format during Rahul Dravid’s era while Shubman Gill was given the role in ODIs and T20Is following Gautam Gambhir’s arrival. However, it looks like both the players aren’t in their plans anymore as they are likely to hand over the vice-captaincy to Bumrah.

However, Bumrah’s participation in the ICC Champions Trophy isn’t certain yet as the pacer sustained an injury during the final Test of the Border-Gavaskar series in Sydney. His participation in the 3-match England ODI series which is set to commence from February 6, isn’t confirmed either.

If Bumrah does end up missing out on the Champions Trophy, then not only will India be landed a huge blow, but the team management will also have to decide on a new vice-captain for the tournament, with no clear favourites in the list.

The post NOT Hardik Pandya or Shubman Gill, THIS star to be chosen as India’s vice-captain for Champions Trophy: Report appeared first on Cricket Country.

The Test in Sydney was filled with drama as skipper Rohit Sharma was dropped from the side while stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah got injured in the first innings, allowing Virat Kohli to lead the team once again.

Over the course of the match, a lot was said and written about Rohit’s future in India’s Test team, prompting suggestions that he could retire after the final match of the series. However, the 37-year-old himself cleared all doubts about it with an interview to the broadcaster.

India head coach Gautam Gambhir lost his cool when he was asked about Rohit’s future with the team in the post-match press conference.

“The first thing I would like to say is that there were so many reports written and things said, I mean you could be more sensible about it. When a captain or a leader takes a call, keeping the team in mind, I don’t think there’s anything bad. A lot of things have been said, but ultimately, individuals are there, but most importantly, there is the team and the country. I think all players should keep the team ahead of their individual interests. Rohit Sharma showed accountability at the top,” Gambhir said.

Gambhir was also asked about Bumrah’s absence from the entirety of the second innings due to a back issue. The head coach admitted that it would have been nice if the pacer was available, but added that the team isn’t dependent on one individual.

“It would have been nice if he would have been there, but we still had five bowlers, and a good team is one which is not dependent on one individual,” Gambhir said.

The post ‘You could be more sensible’: Gautam Gambhir shuts down reporter’s question regarding Rohit Sharma appeared first on Cricket Country.

Rohit will likely be replaced by Shubman Gill in the Sydney Test. According to a report by PTI, India head coach Gautam Gambhir received a request from an ‘influential cricket administrator’ to keep Rohit in the playing XI, but it was rejected due to the fact that India’s hopes of reaching the World Test Championship final (WTC) rest on the match.

“It is learnt that an influential cricket administrator, who commands a lot of respect in the BCCI, has had a word with the head coach to explore if the skipper can be allowed to play the Sydney game and bow out from the Test arena. However, the head coach’s priority is to ensure India wins in Sydney and remains in hunt for a place in the WTC final. Such is the state of affairs that Rohit was more comfortable speaking to his deputy Bumrah and chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar than Gambhir,” the report claimed.

Ahead of the encounter against Australia in Sydney, Gambhir also refused to confirm whether Rohit will be at the toss alongside Australia skipper Pat Cummins on Friday morning.

“We will take a call on the playing XI after looking at the pitch,” Gambhir replied when asked about whether Rohit will participate in the final Border-Gavaskar series match.

Should Rohit get dropped from captaincy in Sydney Test, then pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah is expected to take over the role for the match. Bumrah did captain the Men in Blue to victory in the first Test of the series before getting replaced by Rohit for the role in the second Test.

The post Gautam Gambhir NOT in favour of keeping Rohit Sharma in playing XI for Sydney Test? Report makes HUGE claim appeared first on Cricket Country.

While the Indian head coach Gambhir was one of the main deciders in leaving Rohit out of the playing XI, he set this incident during his own playing days. In the 2018edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Gambhir came to Delhi Capitals (Delhi Daredevils at that time) and got named the franchise’s captain.

However, he struggled to make runs, as he had scored 85 runs in six innings and could not bring out expected results for the team. During his tenure, Delhi Capitals won just one of their six matches.

Between the team’s poor results and him struggling himself, Gambhir gave the captaincy to Shreyas Iyer and refused to play any more matches that season. That season also was the last time he played as an IPL player.

“I didn’t make any call to be honest. It wasn’t my decision to drop him. He himself decided to sit out, which was really courageous decision with him being the captain in the previous matches,” Shreyas Iyer said in the media interaction when Gambhir decided to sit out.

“The respect for him has gone really high. It’s really [good to] see when a captain if he’s not playing well, he backs out. Colin [Munro] came in and gave us the desired start,” he added.

According to media reports in 2018, Gambhir had even decided to let go of his salary of Rs. 2.8 crore from Delhi Capitals.

The post That time when Gautam Gambhir dropped HIMSELF for low performance and Declined taking salary appeared first on Cricket Country.

Gambhir is under pressure to deliver good outcomes, especially when under his leadership, India lost an ODI series to Sri Lanka for the first time since 1997, followed by a 3-0 clean sweep by New Zealand in a Test series on Indian grounds. The Indian team’s performance in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 has also been below par.

The Indian team is set to go through a few changes for the last Test against Australia, set to begin January 3 at Sydney Cricket Ground. Rohit Sharma has been dropped from this Test, whereas Akash Deep has been put to rest due to discomfort in his back.

Pakistan legend Basit Ali lashed out at Gautam Gambhir after India’s dismal performances in the BGT. Gambhir had an important role when Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) won the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 title. Basit Ali stated that there is not much coaching to do in T20s, but even the coach is put to test in a Test match.

“Gautam Gambhir ko tactics nahi aati, coaching ki (Gambhir doesn’t know coaching tactics). No doubt he guided Kolkata Knight Riders to the IPL title (in 2024), but T20s don’t need much coaching. In Test matches, even the coach is tested — what is the coach understanding and planning while sitting on the sidelines?” Basit said on his YouTube channel.

After the victory in Melbourne, Australia will enter the 5th Test knowing that they might secure their place in the World Test Championship (WTC) finals. India, on the other hand, needs to do something out of the box and defeat Australia in the final match if they wish to have some positive hopes for making it to the WTC final.

The post ‘Doesn’t know Tactics…’: Ex-Pakistan cricketer takes a Dig at Gautam Gambhir after loss in Melbourne Test appeared first on Cricket Country.

Between reports of unrest in the dressing room, Gambhir tried to end the rumours by claiming that they were just reports and not the truth. The reports were suggesting that after the defeat in Melbourne, Indian dressing room has gone into chaos as Gambhir has been fed-up with the recent below-par performances.

The reports also suggested that head coach also wanted veteran batter Cheteshwar Pujara to be in the team, but this request got turned down by the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee.

“Debates between coach and player should remain in the dressing room. Stern words. They were just reports, not truth,” Gambhir said while speaking in the pre-match press conference.

“Indian cricket will be in safe hands till honest people stay in the dressing room. The only thing that keeps you in the dressing room is performance,” Gambhir added.

Reports also suggested that some issues have been noticed with a senior player going to project himself as an option to replace Rohit as a captain. India will now face Australia for the fifth and final Test of the ongoing series in Sydney from January 3.

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