Gambhir addresses rumors about Indian dressing room, praises team's spirit
What's the story
Indian cricket team's head coach Gautam Gambhir has recently tackled a few controversies of the team.
In a post-match interview after India's 4-1 T20I series win over England, Gambhir spoke about the Border-Gavaskar Trophy drama, rumors of rifts in the team, etc.
He said such rumors only come out when the team is underperforming in a series.
Team dynamics
Gambhir dismisses rumors of internal conflicts
Gambhir also dismissed rumors of internal rifts in the team during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
He said such speculations are a norm in Indian cricket when the team doesn't perform, but everything goes back to normal when results improve.
"They have played a lot of cricket with each other," Gambhir said, adding the players share a strong bond and are committed to representing their country on the global stage.
Strategic move
Gambhir defends decision to field Harshit Rana
The Indian team was criticized for fielding Harshit Rana as a concussion substitute for injured Shivam Dube.
When Kevin Pietersen, who had expressed his displeasure at the decision in Pune, asked Gambhir about it, the latter defended the move with humor.
He said Dube was ready to bowl his full quota of overs today, showing confidence in his team's strategic decisions.
Game plan
Gambhir explains team combination strategy
Gambhir also explained his strategy of playing just one specialist pacer in the current team combination.
He revealed the plan was to restrict the opposition's middle order with eight overs from Ravi Bishnoi and Varun Chakravarthy.
This way, he believes, he can implement his fearless brand of cricket and control crucial phases of the game against strong batting line-ups like England's.
Match highlight
Gambhir lauds Abhishek Sharma's century in final T20I
Gambhir also praised Abhishek Sharma for his brilliant century in the final T20I against England.
He called it the best T20 hundred he has seen, especially against bowlers who regularly bowl at 140-150 kph.
This was instrumental in India's massive 150-run win over England in the fifth T20I in Mumbai, clinching the series 4-1.