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'Don't Blame Gautam Gambhir' - Aakash Chopra Defends Coach Amid Shocking Defeats

Gautam Gambhir faces criticism after India's series loss to New Zealand (@sujeetsuman1991/X.com)Gautam Gambhir faces criticism after India's series loss to New Zealand (@sujeetsuman1991/X.com)

Gautam Gambhir, who took over India’s senior team head coach just a few months ago, oversaw India losing an ODI series in Sri Lanka after 27 years and a home series after 12 years. However, analyst Aakash Chopra does not believe the head coach is to be blamed for the team’s indifferent run in the recent past.

The Indian cricket team has become synonymous with success off lately, especially after winning the 2024 T20 World Cup. In the last 5 years, the men in blue played two World Cup finals and two WTC finals.

However, since Gautam Gambhir took over as the head coach earlier this year, the team has had an indifferent run. They lost an ODI series in Sri Lanka after a winning streak of 27 years and with the recent Test series loss against New Zealand, India snapped out of its 12 year long home series winning streak.

Gautam Gambhir receives backing amid scrutiny 

Amid intense scrutiny, former cricketer turned commentator Aakash Chopra sided with Gautam Gambhir. In his YouTube video, Chopra acknowledged that India’s record in Gambhir’s tenure does not look appealing, and the team’s indifferent run is definitely concerning.

"This is a meme, so if something is not fact-checked, you can do that. We lost a bilateral ODI series against Sri Lanka after 27 years. India lost a Test at home against New Zealand after 36 years and a Test match in Chinnaswamy after 19 years," he said.

However, Chopra does not believe that Gambhir deserves the blame and hate for it. He just started his coaching tenure and surely had no role to play in the back-to-back series defeats. Hence, Chopra urged fans to cut Gambhir some slack and allow him more time to prove himself as head coach.

"India lost two home Tests in a year after 12 years and scored less than 50 runs in an innings at home for the first time. It is not good. Gautam Gambhir has just started his tenure and all these infamous things have happened. You will look towards him and say that it's his fault. I would say it's not. Don't blame Gautam Gambhir," he added.

Ravi Shastri backs critic Gambhir

Back when India lost a couple of series in Virat Kohli’s captaincy, Gautam Gambhir scrutinised then-head coach Ravi Shastri and questioned his credentials. However, now that the tables have turned, Shastri interestingly didn’t return the favour. 

After the series loss against New Zealand at home, Shastri backed Gambhir, stating it's never easy for a head coach to manage a successful team. Hopefully, as time passes, Gambhir will learn and evolve from the missteps.