Former India cricket team head coach Ravi shastri came to the defence of Gautam Gambhir and said that no single individual should be targeted for a team’s defeat. His remarks come after the Men in Blue were whitewashed 0-2 in the IND vs SA Test series, marking South Africa’s first series win on Indian soil in over a decade. Shastri stressed on the need for Gambhir and the team management to communicate effectively to the players in order to win every match that is played.
Shastri’s warning for Gambhir
Speaking on Prabhat Khabar podcast, Shastri pointed out that the gun was always pointed at the coach when a team lost. He said that he would have taken the responsibility for the defeat if he were the coach, adding that one needed to have that pride and the ability to withstand criticism. Firing a warning to Gambhir, Shastri said that he could be fired if performance is poor, adding that patience was needed.
“If your performance is poor, you could be fired. Therefore, you need to maintain patience. Communication and man-management skills are crucial here. Only then can you motivate the players to win. And that’s what we did. The most important thing is to enjoy whatever you do. Don’t take it as pressure,” Shastri said.
While Gambhir has had an impressive run in white-ball formats as head coach, he hasn’t managed to crack the code in Tests yet. Under him, India have won just two Test series, have lost three and have drawn one. Shastri, however, said that it was wrong to blame one individual for a team’s loss, adding that the players must take responsibility too.
“So when results come, one thing the public should remember is that players should also take responsibility. It should not be that you target one individual. It has happened to me, that is why I am speaking from experience. So it is important that the players also take the rap on the knuckles when something like this happens. There should be pride. They should feel hurt that we have lost. Until that happens, things will not move forward,” he said.
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