(Image source from: x.com/ICC)
Former Indian cricketer Manoj Tiwary has called on the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to consider alternatives to Gautam Gambhir as the coach for Test cricket. India's unexpected defeat in the Test series against South Africa at home has cast doubt on Gambhir's position with the team in this longer format. The Indian team faced a severe loss, losing by 408 runs in the second match, leading to a 0-2 series defeat in the two-match encounter. Despite this, Tiwary wasn't surprised by the outcome and noted that it seemed destined to happen due to Gambhir's confusing strategies. "Honestly, it was clear what would happen. It was bound to occur. I sensed things were not right; the approach they were using is not a suitable plan. There was an obvious lack of consistency. This was evident in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the home series against New Zealand, and now against South Africa," Tiwary commented.
Tiwary further stated that it's time for the BCCI to remove Gambhir to protect Indian Test cricket. "Definitely. There is no doubt about it. (whether India should have a different coach for red-ball cricket). It’s about time they made this choice to preserve Indian Test cricket. That's the essential fact." Following the loss to South Africa, Gambhir defended his record by mentioning his victories in the Champions Trophy and Asia Cup, as well as the Test series draw in England. However, Tiwary challenged Gambhir's claims, arguing that India might have easily lost that series in England and remarked that he took over an ODI team that was built by Rohit Sharma, Rahul Dravid, and Virat Kohli. "Gambhir seems to think that drawing the series in England with a young team was a significant achievement. In my view, that draw was not a positive outcome for us. It wasn’t an impressive result; given our strong players, England made mistakes by being too aggressive on the final day. They could have easily won the series 3-1. There hasn’t been any remarkable success during his time," Tiwary stated.
"I watched a video where he claimed victories in the Champions Trophy and Asia Cup. The foundation of this team was laid by Rohit Sharma, Rahul Dravid, and previously by Virat Kohli. Even without Gambhir as the coach for those two tournaments, India would have still triumphed since the team was already strong. It’s quite unfortunate to see a coach who primarily focuses on white-ball cricket managing India as the head coach. If you lack hands-on experience at the fundamental level, how can you expect to achieve results at the highest level? It is nearly impossible," he added.
