Sports News: India performed very poorly in the two test matches against South Africa. The first match in Kolkata was lost by 30 runs on the third day, while the second match in Guwahati was lost by 408 runs. This was considered the biggest defeat in terms of runs in India’s Test history. After the dust was cleared, Gautam Gambhir came in front of the media and said that the responsibility of the defeat is everyone’s, but it is his first. He said that as a coach, the performance of the team is his primary responsibility.
The team is in a phase of change after stalwarts like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin retired from Tests. Gambhir said he did not like the word ‘transition’ as it should not be an excuse. He told that young players are learning and they need to be given time. However, he also acknowledged that poor performance cannot be hidden in the name of transition.
Gambhir reminded that this year India won the Asia Cup and ICC Champions Trophy. The test series against England was drawn. He said that I am the same person under whom India played well in England and won two big titles. But he made it clear that the successes are now a thing of the past and the current defeat is a matter of grave concern.
India got a huge target of 549 runs in Guwahati. On the fifth day, the team was all out after scoring only 140 runs in 63.3 overs. South African off-spinner Simon Harmer took six wickets for 37 runs and won the series 2-0. He took a total of nine wickets in the match. The Indian batting flopped badly and fight was shown only by Ravindra Jadeja who scored 54 runs in 87 balls.
South Africa’s Aiden Markram showed excellence in fielding. He made a record by taking nine catches in a Test match. Earlier, India’s Ajinkya Rahane had taken eight catches in 2015. This performance of Markram also raised questions on India’s weak fielding. In this series, the Indian cricket team was seen under pressure not only physically but also mentally.
Analysts believe that the combination in the team was not right. The bowling attack seemed weak and the batting lacked patience. Gambhir admitted that the strategy could have been better. He said that if the match had been controlled in the beginning itself, the situation could have been different. He is confident that the young players will learn and come back stronger.
Gambhir said that we will have to learn from the defeat and further preparations will have to start from now. He made it clear that excuses will not suffice, results will have to be given. He expressed confidence that Team India will bounce back and return with a strong performance in the upcoming series. He said that accepting responsibility is the first step, now the focus has to be on improvement.
