NEW DELHI: Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir said that every player has a duty to the team and does not want to place the entire blame for the defeat against the visiting New Zealand squad on the batters.
After losing the second Test by 113 runs in Pune on October 26, India fell to their first Test series loss at home in 12 years. In Bengaluru, the hosts lost by eight wickets in the first Test match. With batters battling against both swing and spin, the team totals in three of the four innings were 46, 156, and 245.
“Everyone has the responsibility, I cannot say just the batters have let us down,” Gambhir said at the press conference ahead of the third Test in Mumbai from Friday.
Additionally, Gambhir said he would not be adding any players for the final Test.
“We are not in a situation where can think of that (giving chance to players who have not played),” Gambhir doused the speculations of an imminent debut being handed to Harshit Rana as reported in some quarters.
“Harshit Rana is not part of the squad. He has just come here to prepare for the Australia tour, Abhishek (Nayar) made it clear yesterday. IPL retention has nothing to be spoken about, we have a Test match here.
“Everyone is available for selection, we will take a call tomorrow.”
Although Gambhir acknowledged that the squad was hurt by the Test series loss, he stated it should motivate them to do better in the future.
“I am not going to sugarcoat that it is hurting. It should hurt and that will make us better. What is wrong in being in this position?
“I am sure this will push the youngsters to be better cricketers. If we have results like Kanpur, might as well have results like this and keep moving forward,” said Gambhir.
According to him, batter should be able to adjust their performance to the game’s circumstances.
“Test cricket should be played like Test cricket. If we have to get 400 runs inside a day’s play we should be able to get it. For me it is about playing the sessions as well. If we play 4.5 sessions we will have a lot of runs on board.
“A complete cricketer is one who can adapt successfully. Not just being able to hit the stands but also rotate strike successfully,” he said.
Talking about the defensive technique of batters being impacted by T20 cricket, Gambhir said, “The more the T20 cricket is played (around the world), the more the people will struggle in defending.
“But the most successful players irrespective of the formats always had strong defence. We need to keep telling people the importance of defence and we are working hard on it and we will see results in future.”
Asked about the Wankhede Stadium pitch around which there has been a lot of speculation, he said, “It is just a good wicket. Very difficult for anyone to judge before both teams have batted on it.”
On his journey at the helm of affairs so far, Gambhir said, “I never expected a very easy run for me. I know that we lost in Sri Lanka and against NZ and it is not a good place to be. All we can do is keep working hard and we will try winning every game that we play to represent the country.”
He emphasized the importance of having some empathy while working with players who are under strain.
“I realise it’s a complete different thing when you were playing and now as a coach, need to put your arm around the players.”