“I don’t think I need to answer to any reports,” Gambhir said on the eve of the fifth Test. “There are some honest words. That’s all I can say. Honesty is extremely important if you want to go on and achieve some great things.”
Gambhir was “extremely, extremely confident” though that India could get the win that they need in Sydney to draw the series and retain the trophy. “If someone had said 40-45 days ago that we would be in this situation, that we can come to Sydney and draw this series, it’s a good position to be in. And I don’t think so that anything is out of control.
“When you come to a Test like this, it’s not that batting didn’t do well or bowling didn’t do well. If batting and bowling hadn’t done well, we wouldn’t have won a Test match or we wouldn’t have been 2-1 down. We could have been in a worse situation. So, as I said, I don’t think so that anything is worrisome.
“We know we’ve got the skill set. We’ve got the individuals. We’ve got everything in that dressing room that can win a Test match here. Not only here, probably go on to do some unbelievable things in the future as well.”
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“First of all, all the individuals, all the individuals know which area they have to work in,” Gambhir said. “And it’s not like I’m talking about individuals here. Because ultimately, you win as a team and lose as a team. And when you’re playing for your country, everyone tries to contribute their maximum. So, that’s important.
“And it’s not like the debate between a player and a coach should be known to everybody. It should just be between them. You [the outsiders] just see the results. And, fortunately or unfortunately, this sport is known only for the results. But the conversations between the individuals and the dressing room, they should stay there.”
In Melbourne, when India were trying to draw the Test match, several of their batters, from Rohit to Kohli to Yashasvi Jaiswal to Pant, played attacking shots to get out. Gambhir, ahead of his first series in charge as India’s Test coach in September last year, had highlighted he wanted to be a part of a team that could adapt to various situations, whether it is scoring 400 in a day or batting time to secure a draw. On Thursday, he was asked whether a batter playing their natural game could be at odds with the match situation.
“It’s the team-first ideology that matters,” Gambhir said. “It’s a team sport and you’ve got to play what the team needs you to do. That’s as simple as it can get. People can play the natural game. But still, in a team sport, individuals only contribute. It’s the team [that is important]. If you need to play in a certain way, I think you’ve got to do it.
“I don’t want to talk about individuals. I think everyone knows where they are. And as I just mentioned, in a team sport, it’s only the team. You have to expect players to do what the team needs you to do. Whether they go to bad sessions, whether they go to be attacking, because that is all that matters in a team sport for me.”
Gambhir reiterated that Indian cricket – despite its ups (a T20 World Cup win this year) and downs (a home series whitewash against New Zealand) – will always be strong.
“I think Indian cricket will always be in safe hands till the time you’ve got honest people sitting in that room,” he said. “And honesty is the most important thing for any transition. And it is not about phasing out senior players or getting the youngsters in.
“Ultimately, the only thing that can keep you in that dressing room is the performance. And it starts from all of us. Not only from the players, from the coaches as well.”
Alagappan Muthu is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo
Source: ESPN Crickinfo