File photo of Gautam Gambhir
The return of rank-turners in India’s home Test assignment against New Zealand has put a big question mark on the future of head coach Gautam Gambhir. For the first time in 12 years, India lost a home Test series while suffering the first-ever clean sweep in a 3-match series. Though there are many factors that contributed to the team’s downfall, head coach Gautam Gambhir’s insistence on bringing back rank turners for the Pune and Mumbai Tests has emerged as an important one. As the chatter on the subject continues, former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali also criticised Gambhir for the pitch decision, while drawing Rahul Dravid comparison.
Comparing India’s current head coach Gambhir with his predecessor Dravid, Basit said that the latter has a much better coaching mind. Gambhir’s decision to reject Dravid’s pitch theory and go back to rank-turners baffled the ex-Pakistan star.
“Rahul Dravid’s mind is better than Gautam Gambhir. Dravid made pitches for four days, where the ball would turn on the last couple of days. You are now making such pitches where even someone who isn’t a regular spinner is getting a lot of turn right from the first day,” Basit said on his YouTube channel.
Gambhir has also deployed a more attacking style of play within in the Indian team. Basit feels the former Kolkata Knight Riders mentor doesn’t have a good grasp on players’ psychology, the way Dravid did.
“Rahul Dravid was a good coach. He knew the psychology of the players. If you tell Virat Kohli to play T10 and T20 in Test cricket, then it’s unfair,” he added.
The Indian cricket team has a big task ahead with the tour of Australia, comprising of 5 Test matches. Gambhir’s philosophy as coach and the performances of veterans like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will be key to India’s success Down Under.
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