Why coach Gautam Gambhir, chief selector Ajit Agarkar are answerable for the home debacles | Cricket News
NEW DELHI: Gautam Gambhir was in the firing line when he sat for the post-series press conference in Guwahati on Wednesday. India’s head coach faced a barrage of questions on the team’s poor run at home, the whitewashes against New Zealand and South Africa, mindset of the team and selections before he was asked point blank whether he thinks he is the right man to do the job in Test cricket.“It is up to the BCCI to decide. Indian cricket is important, I am not important. I am the same guy who got results in England, won the Champions Trophy and Asia Cup,” came the prompt response with the game face on.
It will be a needless reminder of what the team has not managed to achieve under Gambhir but what needs to be remembered is that never before has this Indian cricket team surrendered so tamely in their own backyard. From the 0-3 vs New Zealand to the 0-2 annihilation by South Africa, the lows have touched newer lows and brick by brick the famed fortress built over a decade has collapsed in the space of a few months.From losing just five Tests in the 2012-2023 period to losing the same number of games in 2024-2025, there is no running for cover behind the wall of shame. A team which took a lot of pride in being the ultimate challenge – the final frontier – for visiting teams no longer poses the threat. The sentiment comes from the fact that the last time India lost two Test series at home across two consecutive years was over four decades ago when they went down to West Indies in 1983 and England in 1984/85.Four decades is a lot of time but it took the current setup a little over a year to emulate the unwanted feat. It isn’t something which happened overnight due to some instinctive call but a complete failure of the system which was once in cruise control – at least at home. The heat is on Gambhir, and rightly so, but it will be foolish to single out an individual for the catastrophe.
South Africa’s Keshav Maharaj (centre) with teammates poses with the trophy after team wins the second Test cricket match between India and South Africa, at ACA Stadium, Barsapara in Guwahati. (PTI Photo)
It takes an army to bring an empire down, even if it’s your own empire. Leading this battalion right now are coach Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar and it begs the question – is it the ideal combination to run Indian cricket? The two have been together for over a year now, tasted success but planning has been amiss – something which had been the highlight of their predecessors.There seems to be no blueprint in place for Indian cricket and the feeder line is running dry. Is the chief selector in a position to put a finger on India’s reserve opener in Tests? The ideal replacement for No.3? A solid No.4 if Shubman Gill is injured, like he was in the South Africa series? Who is the off-spinner apart from Washington Sundar? Do we have a seam bowling attack if both Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj are unavailable?No. The answer is an unfortunate ‘no’ because not enough thought has been given to building a squad like how it’s supposed to be built. Many chief selectors in the past have seamlessly carried out the transition because they anticipated. They anticipated with cricketing intelligence and swung a plan into motion before reality could strike, and strike hard. That is why there was a Cheteshwar Pujara after Rahul Dravid, a Virat Kohli after Sachin Tendulkar and Ajinkya Rahane at No.5.
In terms of transition, Indian cricket managed things better in the past with Cheteshwar Pujara following in the footsteps of Rahul Dravid.
Transitions and movement in squads can’t be left to chance and even though coach Gambhir highlighted how there’s multiple transitions underway in both batting and spin department, it has reached the stage because no one planned for it. They would argue that Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and R Ashwin retired on their own but the truth is they didn’t anticipate what was inevitable. They didn’t anticipate the seniors would move on.Fair that the returns were diminishing but was a plan put in motion to fill those giant shoes? Gill was still a work-in-progress as a Test batter; Washington Sundar hadn’t played enough games in the format and there was no reserve opener in sight as the selectors picked Abhimanyu Easwaran but he never made it to the Playing XI.Gambhir explained the meaning of “transition” in his own words, highlighted how it has never happened in Indian cricket before but failed to explain why it reached the stage.
These guys need time – whether it’s the batting unit or the bowling unit. I don’t think ever in Indian cricket something like this has happened where the transition is happening in the spin-bowling department and in the batting department as well
Gautam Gambhir
“Look, that’s why we are giving as many opportunities as we can to someone like Washy. But if you expect Washy to deliver straightaway what Ashwin did after playing more than 100 Test matches, it’s unfair on that young kid. And that is what you guys need to think as well. That he is what — 10, 12, 15 Test matches old? He is learning his trade. He is learning to bowl in different conditions. He is learning to bowl in different situations as well. And obviously, it’s tough when you lose so many experienced players at the same time.”“And that is why it is called transition. That is why these guys need time. Whether it’s the batting unit or the bowling unit. I don’t think ever in Indian cricket something like this has happened where the transition is happening in the spin-bowling department and in the batting department as well. Normally when your batting is secure or your batting has experience then your team goes through a bowling transition. But with this Test team, obviously the transition is happening in both the skillsets. So you guys and all of us need to give them time and I am sure they have got the skill, they have got the talent, they have got the ability. That’s why they are sitting in that dressing room and they have delivered,” reasoned Gambhir.
India lost both their Test matches against South Africa at Kolkata and Guwahati. (Image: TimesofIndia.com)
But were Gambhir and Agarkar not on the same page to tackle a situation like this?England series, which India drew 2-2, continues to find a lot of mention in both coach and chief selector’s media interactions but the fact is that even after dominating most of the sessions, the visitors were very close to returning with a 1-3 scoreline. A scoreline which should have been in their favour. That did cover up a lot of things which weren’t right on the tour and when the wrongs remain unaddressed, it leads to situations like the South Africa series.Not everyone in that changeroom, including Agarkar, are on the same page when it comes to certain calls – squad selection or playing XI. A couple of all-rounders were heavily debated before the Australia Test series too but there was adamance on depth, even if it came at the cost of a proper wicket-taker in Kuldeep Yadav. This Indian side is thin on experience but certainly not on international exposure. They all have had a fair bite of what it takes to excel at this well but it’s the confusion in tactics, strategy and planning which is leading to such debacles.
South Africa inflicted a 2-0 whitewash on India in the home Test series, winning both matches in Kolkata and Guwahati.
“I don’t give excuses. I’ve never done that in the past. I will never do it in the future as well. But four or five batters in this top eight have literally played less than 15 Test matches [each], and they will grow. They’re learning on the job. They’re learning on the field. Test cricket is never easy when you’re playing against a top-quality side. So you’ve got to give them time as well. So for me, I think that is something they’ll keep learning. That is important. Because I know that I hate using this word transition. This is exactly what transition is,” Gambhir further said.He made a fair point, yes there is inexperience but now is not the time to hide behind that. If you didn’t consider fixing something earlier don’t address it when it’s completely shattered. It will take a lot of doing to lift this dressing room back up and while the players have to be rightfully questioned for the horror show, the coach and selector remain answerable for the tactical mess Indian cricket finds itself in.A country which was once capable of fielding parallel XIs together, is now struggling to find the right men for the longest format. The obsession with all-rounders, depth and utility cricketers could well get you a one-off result like in England but the absence of specialists and right people for the right job will ensure 0-3 to New Zealand and 0-2 to South Africa remain a consistent affair.
