A war of words is brewing in Indian cricket ahead of the India vs England Test series. India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir has responded to Sunil Gavaskar after the Little Master criticised him for India’s poor performance in the Australia Test series. While Gambhir guided India to the ICC Champions Trophy title, Gavaskar took a dig at Gambhir on the prize money for not disclosing whether he shared it with his fellow coaching staff. Now, Gambhir has responded without naming the former India captain, saying Indian cricket is not anyone’s property.
“It’s people’s job to criticise me, and they should criticise. But there are some people who have been sitting in the commentary box for 20-25 years. They questioned everything I did. They think that Indian cricket is their property. Unfortunately, Indian cricket is not someone’s property. It is the identity of 140 crore Indians and it will remain that way. They questioned my coaching, my records, my concussions and even my prize money,” Gambhir said at ABP News ‘India At 2047‘ Summit.
What did Sunil Gavaskar say?
India lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 1-3, with batters including Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma performing poorly. Sunil Gavaskar criticised Gambhir and the coaching staff. Australia series wasn’t the first one, though. Indian batters failed miserably against New Zealand at home, facing a whitewash in the three-match Test series.
“What was the coaching staff doing? Batting coach? Against New Zealand, India were bowled out for 46. In the remaining matches, they were not able to do well, and they lost the series. There was no character in the batting order. In Australia too, India lacked solidity in the batting order,” Sunil Gavaskar told Star Sports.
“We have to ask questions: What did you do? Why is there no improvement?’ If you tell me the bowling was unplayable (in both series) and then our batters were not able to stand up to it, then it’s okay. Even the best players can’t face unplayable bowling. But it was not the case. Tell me, what have you done?”
Gavaskar did not stop taking a shot at Gambhir. After India won the Champions Trophy, Gavaskar asked if Gambhir would share the prize money with other coaching staff equally, like Rahul Dravid did after the T20 World Cup triumph.
“After the ICC T20 World Cup win and the Board announcement of prize money, the then-coach Rahul Dravid, ever the team man, refused to accept more than his fellow members of the coaching staff and, in fact, shared it equally with his colleagues,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Sportstar.
Gautam Gambhir responds
However, Gautam Gambhir isn’t someone who would stay quiet. He responded without name-dropping anyone. While he did not respond to the criticism, Gambhir took a potshot instead.
“The prize money that I got in the Champions Trophy. I don’t need to tell this country where I left the money and where I invested it. However, this country should know that such people have been working in the country as NRIs for many years. They earn money from the country and take it abroad. I don’t do security checks or immigration at 11:55,” Gambhir said.
“Those who only have to spend 1 day, 180 days. I am an Indian, and I will remain an Indian till my last breath. I will not become an NRI to save tax. People who live in glass houses shouldn’t be throwing stones at other people’s homes.”
Can Gambhir silence critics?
While the war of words continues, Gambhir must respond on the field. India haven’t had a good run in Tests under Gambhir. India have won three Tests and lost 6 out of 10 matches, he has been in charge.
The IND vs ENG Test series will be his trial by fire. India haven’t won in England since 2007. They came close last time they toured, but it ended in a 2-2 draw. Now, in the five-match Test series, India have a chance.
However, if India fail to win the Test series, Gambhir’s position will be in jeopardy. Even if he continues as the white-ball coach, India might look at a new red-ball coach. Rohit Sharma’s captaincy will also be under threat.
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