Gautam Gambhir hardly ever smiles and normally carries a critical demeanor each on and off the sector. (AP Photo)
NEW DELHI: Fans have hardly seen Gautam Gambhir in a jovial temper. The former India batter hardly ever smiles and normally carries a critical demeanor each on and off the sector. But after the second Test at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, Gambhir appeared lighter and even cracked a joke whereas responding to a journalist’s query.Speaking on the workload of India’s skipper Shubman Gill, Gambhir quipped that he himself would need a psychological conditioning coach, given the quantity of matches India has performed on a trot this yr. “First of all, I need one,” he mentioned when requested if Gill ought to get a psychological conditioning coach. “This is my birthday gift. The coach is as good as the team,” he added.Gill has been taking part in continuous for the previous month, transitioning shortly from the Asia Cup to the West Indies collection. He is about to start his ODI management stint when India tackle Australia in a three-match collection Down Under, beginning Sunday, October 19.For Gambhir, final yr’s dwelling collection whitewash in opposition to New Zealand nonetheless stings, highlighting the challenges of making ready on rank turners. India’s batting line-up, aside from KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja, is younger. Yet each Yashasvi Jaiswal and Gill now have sufficient expertise to deal with tough pitches.It is price recalling that Virat Kohli’s Test common dipped on such tracks, whereas Ravichandran Ashwin and Jadeja thrived, evolving into world-class performers. On much less useful pitches, finger spinners Jadeja and Washington Sundar are much less threatening, whereas wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav stays a potent choice.The venues for the upcoming two-Test collection in opposition to South Africa will likely be essential in assessing India’s power in dwelling situations, significantly as there will likely be no red-ball cricket for the subsequent eight months forward of the Sri Lanka tour.With a younger batting line-up gaining expertise and spinners like Kuldeep adapting to completely different situations, Gambhir stays optimistic about India’s skill to deal with challenges. Meanwhile, his lighter demeanor post-match reveals even probably the most critical coach can discover a second of levity amid a packed cricketing calendar.
