India Head Coach Gautam Gambhir has been on the radar of fans, pundits and critics for almost his entire duration at the helm of Indian coaching staff. However, the former left-handed opening batsman addressed the media ahead of the second Test against Sri Lanka. Notably, the Shubman Gill-led side will be up against the neighbours in the second of the two-game Test series at SSC, Colombo starting August 23. In the opening game, the visitors registered a 165-run win. They will aim to extend their winning momentum, in order to keep their WTC Final 2027 qualification hopes alive.
However, on the eve of the second Test, head coach Gambhir talked to the media and laid his priorities clearly. Gambhir said that he is aiming for wins, not likes and views. Addressing the persistent scrutiny regarding his coaching career, Gambhir said, “My job is to win trophies, not views and likes. That’s all I believe in, and that is going to be my opinion. Rankings do not matter. I think we are going through a transition, and I’m sure that people sitting in the press box and the commentary box know that. Despite that, yes, there will be blips, there will be ups and downs, but since the England tour last year, I think we’ve played reasonably consistent cricket. We know where we are heading, and we are heading in the right direction,” he added.
If they Continue to Put their Heads Down and Work Hard, Will Take Indian Cricket Forward: Gautam Gambhir
During the conference, Gambhir also spoke about the depth in red-ball cricket and said that if players keep working hard, Indian cricket is going to go forward. “We keep talking about depth in red-ball cricket,” Gambhir told the reporters. “We know how much depth we have in white-ball cricket, but the more depth we have in red-ball cricket, the better it is for the dressing room,” he added. “When you have competition, people keep getting better. Dev waited a long time and made the most of it, and Manav came in and delivered in a crucial Test match. These guys, if they continue to put their heads down and work hard, will take Indian cricket forward,” the former batter opined.
In the opening Test of the series, Devdutt Padikkal scored his maiden Test century in the first innings and scored 167 off 230 balls to help the side post a mammoth 462. In the second innings, he missed his fifty and contributed 44 runs off 75 deliveries as the visitors posted 193 runs on the scoreboard. On the other hand, Manav Suthar, playing his second Test for India finished with figures of 4/76 in the first innings, while 6/55 in the second to claim a ten-wicket haul and etch his name in history.
