Gautam Gambhir, the Indian head coach of the team, has already focused his eyes on the upcoming T20 world cup showing no signs of relent and a clear mission to take India through the global challenge. Having concluded the five match-T20I series on a high note against Australia, Team India now has to look forward to red-ball cricket.
As the first Test against South Africa is approaching (November 14), Shubman Gill and his team is preparing a new set of conditions. The life of Gambhir as the head coach has not been free of challenges as there have been a lot of criticisms regarding his choice of the team and strategies. But the retired cricketer has decided not to focus on the external views. The questioning heightened following the loss by India in the ODI series against Australia though Gambhir was adamant in his ideologies.
India won the series of five T20 international matches with Australia that just concluded and it marked progress in the leadership of Gambhir by 2 goals to 1. His presence has altered the dressing room environment physically and creates the impression of intensity and purpose by the players. Gambhir reflected on the culture that has been evolving in the team and what he felt would happen in future.
“It has been a very transparent dressing room, it has been a very honest dressing room, and that is how we want this dressing room to be,” said Gambhir in the BCCI video.
“I’ve always been a believer that it’s not about the individual performances. I can be very happy with the individual performances, and I will always remain happy with individual performances. But ultimately it’s the loss of one-day series, that’s the bottom line and I can never celebrate a series loss as a coach.”
Gautam Gambhir
“As a player I can appreciate individuals, but as a coach I think it is my moral responsibility that we as a nation and we as individuals should never, never celebrate a series loss. Ultimately we are representing the country, yes T20 series was different, we won the series, a lot of positives, but a lot of learning as well.”
Gautam Gambhir
The New Delhi native admitted that the Indian team still needs refinement in certain areas. He stressed that building a strong campaign for the T20 World Cup will be a long process that requires every player to stay focused and work hard. With three months left before the tournament, Gambhir’s main goal is to maintain the right balance within the squad.
“I think we still aren’t where we want to be in the T20 World Cup. Hopefully, guys know the importance of being fit. We still have three months to be where we want to be.”
Gautam Gambhir
In the meantime, India will be concentrating in red-ball cricket as they are about to confront South Africa in a Test series starting on November 14. Team India will be happy to continue with their winning streak after just a magnificent series of home matches against the West Indies, and extend their dominance in Test cricket.
