India head coach Gambhir confident about challenging day-night Test at Adelaide; says team has enough time post Perth Test and warm-up game to tune up for that December 6-10 second fixture
India’s then captain Virat Kohli ducks a bouncer in the first Test against Australia at the Adelaide Oval on December 17, 2020. Pic/Getty Images
Team India will figure in a day-night Test after four years when they front up to Australia at Adelaide on December 6 for the pink ball encounter. But head coach Gautam Gambhir reckoned the nine-day gap between the conclusion of the Perth Test and the contest in Adelaide will come in handy for his team to tackle the change in match conditions.
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Head coach Gautam Gambhir during yesterday’s press meet. Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi
“We have nine days before the pink ball Test and we have a two-day practice game against the Prime Minister’s XI [in Canberra on November 30]. So I think there’s going to be enough time for us to prepare for the pink-ball Test. It’s going to be exciting. That [day-night] is something which a lot of people actually look forward to because it’s a new thing. It’s a great venue to play the pink ball Test as well,” said Gambhir in response to mid-day’s query on the challenges of playing a day-night Test after four years, during a media conference on Monday.
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Focus on good preparation
When asked about the challenges in the five-Test series, starting with the first Test in Perth on November 22, Gambhir said: “The first and foremost challenge is obviously the conditions. I think in 10 days, if we can get good, proper preparation before the start of the series, we are going to be in really good shape. We’ve got a lot of experienced players who’ve been to Australia a lot many times. Their experience will come in handy for the young players as well. So these 10 days are going to be very crucial. But come [November] 22nd morning, I think we should be absolutely ready to fire from ball one.”
Dull start for head coach
Gambhir, who took over from Rahul Dravid as Team India head coach before the white-ball series against Sri Lanka last July, suffered a 0-3 whitewash in Test series against New Zealand in home conditions recently. He wants his boys not to think about personal milestones. “The only conversation I have had [with players]—be it with the seniors, experienced players or the youngsters—is to keep Indian cricket ahead of any other thing, keep the team ahead of their personal milestones. We will keep having the same conversation. It is about the ‘team first’ ideology, philosophy as compared to any other thing,” remarked Gambhir.
WTC mountain
If India need to secure a spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) final to be played at Lord’s in June next year, they will need to win at least four out of the five Tests Down Under. But Gambhir said he is not thinking about the Lord’s game. “We are not even looking at what’s going to happen in the World Test Championships or whether we are going to qualify or not. “Every series is important when you play for your country. For us, it’s about two good teams taking on each other and we want to go out and give our best,” Gambhir added.
Gambhir: Ponting should stick to Australian cricket
India head coach Gautam Gambhir has strongly supported out-of-form Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma after they copped criticism from Ricky Ponting. The former Australia skipper recently questioned the form of Kohli and Rohit. “What does Ponting have to do with Indian cricket? I think he should think about Australian cricket and more importantly we have got no concerns whatsoever for Virat and Rohit,” said Gambhir.
“I think they [Kohli and Rohit] are incredibly tough men. They’ve achieved a lot for Indian cricket and will continue to achieve a lot in future as well. For me, the most important thing is that they still work really hard, still passionate, still want to achieve a lot more and that is something which is very important. The hunger in that dressing room is incredibly important for me,” Gambhir added.
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