After India lost to New Zealand by eight wickets in the first Test match at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru last week, head coach Gautam Gambhir defended his team’s strategy. Day 1’s opening innings saw the hosts thrashed for 46 runs, and even though their batting performance significantly improved in the second innings, it was unable to avoid a loss.
This outcome followed India defeating Bangladesh in the second Test in Kanpur thanks to their aggressive strategy. Rain caused the Test to be cancelled for nearly three days. However, they achieved a historic victory thanks to the Indian players’ aggressive mentality.
Gambhir was present at the pre-match press conference before the second Test, which starts in Pune on Thursday, October 24. The former India opener discussed the loss and stated that going forward, they would need to accept outcomes similar to those in Bengaluru. The Indian coach emphasised that his team was still trying to win the game in spite of their terrible batting performance in the first innings. According to Gambhir, winning Test matches has always been India’s top priority, with draws coming in second.
“For this reason, we refer to cricket—or sports in general—as a great leveller. Days like the ones we had in Bengaluru must be accepted if you like the ones we had in Kanpur. The upside was that we were still aiming to win the Test match despite being bowled out for 46. We want to play cricket like that, therefore that was significant,” Gambhir remarked.
“As I already stated, we always have the first choice to win, and a draw is the second. If you also consider the second innings, it is clear that playing for two and a half days was not the only goal. We were considering our options for winning the game. We were probably only a hundred runs away from qualifying for the match, if you ask me. After being bowled out for 46, when they still had to bat for more than two and a half days, I doubt many teams would feel that way. However, we want to play cricket of that calibre moving ahead,” he continued.
It’s a pain to choose the playing XI for any Test match in India: Gautam Gambhir
Sarfaraz Khan, KL Rahul, and Shubman Gill are vying for two positions in India’s starting XI for the second Test. Sarfaraz took advantage of Gill’s absence from the final game because of stiff neck, hammering an incredible 150. Rahul, though, was left out of both innings. According to Gambhir, selecting India’s playing XI for Test cricket is a pain.
“Look, whether it’s in domestic or international cricket, the quantity of talent we have makes it difficult to choose the playing XI for every Test match in India. Therefore, this is not only a difficult situation; it’s actually a good one. It’s always a positive thing when there is competition for spots and good talent is entering the pool.
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This indicates that Indian cricket has a solid base and is playing well. The difficulty is always tough anywhere, so I don’t think the challenge in Pune will be any different,” Gambhir said.
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