Gautam Gambhir (L) and Rishabh Pant (R)
The Indian management led by head coach Gautam Gamhir is reported to add another chapter in string of their shocking decisions and reshuffles. In a latest development, star wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant is reported to be benched for the upcoming three-match ODI series against New Zealand.
The chances of this development being true lie in the volume of the reports that have been claimed by multiple media outlets. The current Indian team management seems to have fallen all over the place. It all started when they started tampering the core of Team India.
That said, here’s a dive into the events that reflects how the avengers have dispersed and Gautam Gambhir’s infinity stones killing half of the Indian team’s universe.
Players who retired or ignored from the Indian team:
| Players | Tests | ODIs | T20Is |
| Rohit Sharma | Retired Abruptly | Active | Retired |
| Virat Kohli | Retired Abruptly | Active | Retired |
| Ravichandran Ashwin | Retired Abruptly | Retired Abruptly | Retired Abruptly |
| Mohammed Shami | Dropped despite form | Dropped despite form | Dropped despite form |
| Mohammed Siraj | Active | Dropped | Dropped |
| Shreyas Iyer | Injury Concerns | Injury Concerns | Dropped Despite form |
| Hardik Pandya | Doesn't Play | Dropped abruptly | Active |
The timeline of established players getting marginalised
It was India’s Test setup that bore the hit of Gautam Gambhir’s infinity stones. The core of the team felt a shake after the established players were targeted, followed by sidelining them.
The abrupt retirements and miscommunicated omissions
The unexpected retirement of the spin legend Ravichandran Ashwin in the middle of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia was the first major shock for Indian cricket fans. No one would have expected Ashwin to hang his boots in the middle of an ongoing tour.
Furthermore, after the conclusion of the horrific run in Australia, all eyes were on India’s another away task, a five-match Test series against England. Speaking of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, they were dedicated for the England Tests despite a horrific run in Australia. Rohit's desire to play in England came after he benched himself in the last Test against Australia in Sydney Test.
Unsolved puzzle of Rohit-Kohli duo’s Test retirement
During a conversation with the former Australia skipper Michael Clarke in an episode of the Beyond23 Cricket Podcast, Rohit’s conversation clearly hinted towards his desire to play for India in the Test series against England.
“Absolutely (India have a red-hot chance of beating England in England?). Last time we played these guys, it was 2-2. We need some of these guys (Bumrah and Shami) to be 100 percent,” said Rohit to Clarke.
“If we have a fit team going to England, we will have a great series. It will be a good challenge for us,” he added later.
If Rohit’s above statements are taken to a philosophical or linguistic expert, it wouldn’t take a time to clear what were former India skipper’s intentions cushioned in these statements.
These remarks clearly reflected that he had a desire to appear for India in England Tests. But it’s still a puzzle to solve what happened behind the scenes that pushed him to announce an abrupt retirement from the Tests on May 7, just after the three weeks of expressing his excitement for the format.
A similar line of events was seen in the case of Virat Kohli as he played in Ranji Trophy 2024-25 to prepare for the Test series in England. But what happened on May 12 was something Indian fans were not ready to take very easily. They were still in the process of coming out of Rohit’s retirement but another legend’s retirement within only five days left them in shock.
It’s still a case study what happened all of sudden behind the doors. Was it the management's stance that pushed three established legends away from Team’s core in the longest format of the game or they decided themselves to retire.
The curious case of Mohammed Shami
What unfolded in the case of Mohammed Shami’s omission exposed the lack of communication between current management and the senior players. It also ignited a new debate on the fitness parameters and selection transparency in Indian cricket’s current setup.
This Shami’s selection controversy initiated with chief selector Ajit Agarkar’s statement after the senior pacer’s omission from the Test team for the assignments against England and West Indies. “He hadn’t played enough cricket to be considered for selection,” said Agarkar while speaking about this decision.
Following Agarkar’s remarks, Shami came up with a hard-lined rebuttal, saying, “About giving an update, it’s not my responsibility to give an update or ask for an update. It’s not my job to give updates on my fitness. My job is to attend the NCA, prepare, and play matches. That’s their matter, who gives them updates or not.”
Mohammed Shami has a vast pedigree to his name with 206 wickets in 107 ODIs innings, with an economy rate of just 5.58, including 10 four-wicket hauls and six five-wicket hauls. He also has 229 wickets wickets in 122 Test innings, including 12 four-wicket hauls and six five-wicket hauls.
Notably, the 35-year-old has also been in an impressive run of form with the ball in the domestic cricket across all formats. He was the second highest wicket-taker for Bengal in the Ranji Trophy 2025-26, claiming 20 wickets in just seven innings, including a four-wicket haul and a five-wicket haul.
Besides that, he also ended up as the leading wicket-taker for his side in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025-26, with 16 wickets in seven innings, including two four-wicket hauls.
The fall of stability in the white-ball cricket
The destructive approach of Gautam Gambhir-led management isn’t only restricted to the Test. It has also impacted India’s white-ball setup severely, be it in the ODIs or in the T20Is. The list starts with the unjustified omission of the in-form pacer Mohammed Siraj from the ODIs.
It further continues with the all-rounder of Hardik Pandya’s stature getting ignored in the ODIs. The question becomes more serious when Shreyas Iyer gets ignored in the T20 format despite leading KKR to the title in IPL 2024, followed by guiding Punjab Kings to the final in IPL 2025.
The mediocre replacements and reshuffles deepen the concern
Apart from the abrupt retirements and omissions of the in-form players and established veterans, there’s another part that raises eyebrows of Indian cricket's well-wishers. It is the practice of imposing mediocre replacements and executing reshuffles without a proper justification.
Relatively young all-rounder in Nitish Kumer Reddy in ODIs is replacing the senio like Hardik Pandya. It is something that seems to harm the impact of senior player's. contribution for the team. It also reflects in Reddy's numbers in the ODIs and Tests. Reddy has scored just 27 runs in two innings of the two games, alongside being wicketless in both the innings.
Besides that, the inclusion of Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana to replace Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami in ODIs also questions if management is really prioritizing Indian cricket’s betterment.
Prasidh Krishna has scalped 37 wickets in 21 innings, with an economy rate of 6.02 compared to Mohammed Siraj's economy of 5.17 to claim 73 wickets in 46 ODI innings. On the other. hand, Harshit Rana has scalped just 20 wickets in 11 innings with an economy rate of 6.01.
This unstable and 'short-sighted' approach of the management is also reflecting in the results of the Indian team. They faced a 0-2 series defeat against South Africa, following a debcale in the three-match ODI series against Australia by a margin of 1-2.
The success in T20Is can be considered as an exception but that too seems to be based more on luck instead of a proper process of policies. This flawed policy was exposed when team fumbled and faced a top-order collapse in the Asia Cup 2025 Final against Pakistan before Tilak Varma's individual brilliance won the game for India.
.jpg?type=mq "Mohsin Naqvi Press Conference")
