Gautam Gambhir or his assistant coaches are ready to be sacked, speculates the former Australian star
India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir is under a lot of pressure from all quarters due to the team’s recent performances in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Gambhir has now been criticized by former Australian spinner Brad Hogg for his earlier comments regarding India’s adaptability.
Ahead of the five-match Test series against Australia, Gautam Gambhir has stated that he wants India to be adaptable to the situation. However, Hogg feels that the Indian team just played aggressively.
According to the former left-hander, the team must know how to play defensively if they want to save the Test match. But India’s ultra-aggressive style took a toll on them, even resulting in a flurry of goals.
Brad Hogg questions India’s “adaptability” under Gautam Gambhir
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Brad Hogg recalled Gautam Gambhir’s earlier comments where he wanted the Indian team to adapt. Hogg urged the Indian team to learn how to play a defensive game along with their attacking game to save the Test match.
“The one thing that Gautam Gambhir said earlier is that he wants his players to be adaptable, to have that aggressive type of cricket, but when they have to save a Test match, they also have their defensive game. And I really haven’t seen that in the Indian team doing that as we went forward,” Hogg said.
Team India played a very aggressive game which even cost them the Test match. However, such ultra-aggressive play even earned them an incredible victory against Bangladesh in the two-match Test series.
India have naturally aggressive batsmen in the form of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, Shubman Gill and Nitish Kumar Reddy. Pant smashed a quick-fire 61 off 33 balls in the second innings of the Sydney Test on a bowler-friendly pitch.
Gautam Gambhir’s statement on India’s adaptability
India head coach Gautam Gambhir had earlier stated that he wants the team to be adaptable to any situation. Gambhir wanted India to be able to score 400 runs in one day as well as bat for two days to save the Test match.
“We want to be a team that can score 400 runs in a day and can bat for 2 days to save a test match too. And that’s the growth and adaptability that we’re looking for. And that’s what test cricket is all about. they have batsmen in the dressing room who can do both” , Gambhir told India Today.
However, adaptability has been lacking in the Indian batting line-up so far. The batsmen could not stay put for long and seemed to be itching to get ahead too soon.
T20 cricket is believed to be one of the main reasons for the lack of defense by the Indian batsmen. The players play a lot of T20 cricket and often come back to make quick runs rather than staying at the crease for long.
Brad Hogg on the future of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli
Brad Hogg further pointed to Gautam Gambhir and his coaching staff for India’s downfall. He also spoke about the poor form of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma which hurt India badly in the Test series against Australia.
“So either Gautam Gambhir has to go or the new head coach brings in his coaching staff or the assistant coaches also have to go. But I think through that particular period you have Rohit Sharma and AND Virat Kohli is there,” Hogg noted.
“Two leaders who really haven’t been at the top of their game. So there are a number of variables you can look at, which is India’s decline at Test level over a period of time,” he noted.
The upcoming Champions Trophy will be important for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli and could decide their future. Both players are under a lot of pressure after a recent dip in form.
