Rohit Sharma and Co. have the difficult task of trying to get themselves up and running for the next assignment and put the recent home Test series whitewash against New Zealand on the backburner. India will soon gear up for the five-Test series in Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy; although the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is in no mood to let the embarrassing loss to NZ pass by. Head coach Gautam Gambhir is all set to be questioned about his vision for the team as the BCCI is all set to review the road crossed and the one ahead after India’s poor show, which saw the hosts suffer a Test series whitewash at home for the first time (in series comprising three or more matches).
As per a report in Times of India, the pitches used in Pune and Mumbai will be questioned, along with how the current management is running the team. As per the report, it is important to mention that during Rahul Dravid’s tenure as the head coach, the management had tried to do away with rank turners, as sporting pitches during the England series played in February-March this year proved. All the five Tests in the England series, lasted a minimum of four days.
However, the current management resorted to turning pitches after Rohit and his team lost the first Test by eight wickets in Bengaluru. The skipper misread the conditions on Day 1 – and he openly admitted it – and opted to bat under overcast skies. India were bowled out for 46 in their first innings, from where there was no coming back. As it turns out, the fresh information that is now emerging is that all members of the leadership group were not on the same page when it came to playing on rank turners.
“The decision to go back to rank turners caught a few people in the board by surprise. The new support staff under Gautam Gambhir will be asked about their vision for taking the team forward,” TOI quoted a source as saying.
HT, however, could not independently verify the development.
Gambhir’s role in selection meetings under scrutiny
As per the same report, there is also some amount of discontent about head coach Gambhir sitting in selection meetings. It is important to mention that the members of the current coaching staff have been employed on the suggestions and backing of Gambhir.
“The BCCI has agreed to every demand of Gambhir so far. He has been given a support staff of his choice despite BCCI’s policy of promoting coaches they have groomed through NCA’s programme. He has also been allowed to attend the selection meeting to pick the team for the Australia tour. The board may have to revisit its decisions and ask Gambhir for a roadmap,” TOI quoted the source as saying.
The BCCI is also looking at the impending transition after the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy. India’s road ahead for the World Test Championship (WTC) final has gotten tougher after the 0-3 series loss against New Zealand as they now need to win 4-0 or 5-0 Down Under to make it to the final, without depending on other results. If Rohit’s team fails to do so, it would be the first time that India won’t qualify for the WTC final, since the concept’s inception in 2019.
As for the results against New Zealand, the series opener saw the Indian batters not being able to tackle the overcast conditions in the first innings, and the hosts were bundled out for their lowest home Test score in Bengaluru. The Pune and Mumbai Tests then saw the Indian batters struggling against the turning tracks, with the likes of Mitchell Santner and Ajaz Patel running riot and wrapping up both games under three days.
