Boria Majumdar
A lot of fan anger is directed at Gautam Gambhir at the moment. Many have called for his head, singling him out as the one responsible for the disastrous 2-0 series loss against South Africa. While fan anger is understandable, much of it is raw emotion rather than reason. Gambhir is indeed accountable, as he himself admitted in the press conference. But is he alone the root of all evil, and will things improve simply by removing him? The answer is no.
Much like Gambhir, the batters are equally – if not more – accountable. The bowlers too need to take responsibility for what has happened. Take the issue of shot selection. Yashasvi Jaiswal playing the same cut shot that caused his dismissal at Eden Gardens in the second innings at Guwahati can’t be blamed on Gambhir. KL Rahul, perhaps the most improved batter in the last year, flopped in both Tests. Gambhir isn’t responsible for the failure of his premier batter. Lack of application and lack of temperament can’t be placed solely at the head coach’s doorstep.
Rishabh Pant is one of India’s best red-ball batters. The way he got out in Guwahati led Dale Steyn to call it a “brain fade” moment, and he was right. Gambhir can’t be held responsible for Pant jumping out, trying to hit Marco Jansen out of the park, and edging it to the wicketkeeper in the process.
Where Gambhir can be questioned is team selection. And the one particular selection that is genuinely debatable is Nitish Kumar Reddy. Many have pointed to the selection of Dhruv Jurel, but the truth is that he scored twin hundreds against South Africa A. Gambhir and the team management rewarded him for his good form coming into the Test series. In fact, I had written ahead of the Kolkata Test that Jurel had earned his spot, and that assessment was based purely on his efforts against South Africa A.
Nitish, however, was a questionable selection. If he bowls only 7–8 overs in an innings of more than 100 overs, it is clear that the team management doesn’t have much faith in his bowling. And with the bat, he clearly isn’t there yet. Should India have gone in with a specialist batter instead of Nitish, especially when their best batter, Gill, had been sidelined?
That said, blaming only Gambhir is to miss the larger point. This is a collective failure, and no individual can be singled out. The need of the hour is introspection and acceptance that there is a serious problem. Only then can it be addressed. Gambhir, as head coach, needs to lead the course correction and drive change.
India need a solid No. 3, and by the Sri Lanka series in August 2026, it is essential that the team identifies the right person for that role. At present, they don’t have one, with none among Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Karun Nair, or Washington Sundar having made the position their own. With limited red-ball talent in the country, Gambhir has a difficult task ahead. Once Gill is back, the duo will need to steer India forward amid all this adversity. That is what sport demands, and allows you to do.
Follow Revsportz for latest sports news