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All is not well in the Indian dressing room, as the rift between the head coach of the Indian team Gautam Gambhir and some of the senior players in the squad has now surfaced after India’s loss at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) after which the visiting side now trail 2-1 in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.
Gautam Gambhir blasted at Indian players after loss in the MCG Test
Differences in the Indian dressing room have been reportedly going on for some time now. But it seems that the loss at the Boxing Day Test was too much for Gambhir. An Indian Express report suggests that the Indian head coach lashed out his anger in the dressing room and told the players “Bahut ho gaya (I’ve had enough),” The report pointed out that Gambhir’s anger was towards players who opted to play their natural game instead of choosing to adapt with the team’s situation.
During the 4th Test of the series, a number of players threw their wickets away due to their irresponsible shot-selection. Notable dismissals in this regard was that of Rishabh Pant, who gave away his wicket while playing rash shots in both the Indian innings, Virat Kohli who was dismissed in a similar fashion throughout the series and Yashasvi Jaiswal who was sent back to the pavilion after a controversial third umpire at a time when the team desperately needed his presence to save the match on the final day of the Test.
The report additionally suggested that Gambhir has told the Indian dressing room that up until now, he has given the players a free hand to play as they liked, but now he will be deciding the team’s strategy for each and every match and those players who will not comply to the pre-decided strategy would be given a thankyou- thereby implying that non-complacency will result in their exclusion from the squad.
Also Read: ‘Insult of 1.5 billion Indians’: Navjot Singh Sidhu lambasts Travis Head for his controversial celebration after Rishabh Pant’s wicket in 4th AUS vs IND Test
Gambhir wanted Cheteshwar Pujara for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25?
Cheteshwar Pujara has been a pillar of strength for Indian cricket, especially in Tests. His overseas record, particularly in Australia, has been nothing short of remarkable so far. To keep the balance in the team intact, the report further suggested that Gambhir wanted to include the top-order batter in the squad for their ongoing tour to Australia but the Indian selectors shot down the prospects of Pujara joining the squad. Additionally, Gambhir kept on talking about Pujara even after India’s win in the first Test match at Perth.
Pujara has an impeccable record in Test cricket having played 103 Test matches for the country and scored 7,195 runs with an average of 43.60. His record against Australia is even more impressive with 2,074 runs in 25 matches against the Aussies including 2 memorable double-hundreds and 5 centuries against the arch-rivals.
