India head coach Gautam Gambhir has defended the team’s selection calls after a 3-2 T20I series win over New Zealand, saying his job is to make the right decisions, not the popular ones. He spoke to broadcasters ahead of the fifth T20I against New Zealand on Sunday (November 1). The comments came amid scrutiny over Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s limited game time, with Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma holding the opening spots. Both Gambhir and captain Shreyas Iyer have faced questions over the teenager’s chances. Sooryavanshi is waiting for an opportunity despite his performances, with plenty of options on the bench.
The debate has centred on India’s top order. Sooryavanshi, a teenage batter, has travelled with the squad while Samson and Abhishek have kept their places at the top. Samson and Abhishek have continued to open the innings and played key roles in India’s T20I World Cup title defence earlier this year.
Gambhir said players who have performed over a long period deserve a longer run. “First of all, my job is not to make everyone happy. My job is to take the right decisions, not the popular decisions. And that is what I’m there for,” he told the broadcasters.
“It is very easy to take the popular decision. But for me, I think the important thing is to take the right decision and make sure that there is a lot of security inside the dressing room.”
He added that the squad has a lot of talent, but players who have done phenomenally well over a long period deserve a longer rope.
The scrutiny has followed a packed run for India’s T20I side. The team played a three-match series against Afghanistan, flew to Japan for the Asian Games and a one-off T20I, returned for a five-match series against West Indies, then travelled to New Zealand for five more games. India arrived in New Zealand less than 24 hours after their West Indies series ended.
Asked how he would keep the players motivated with the series already decided, Gambhir dismissed the idea of dead rubbers. “When you’re playing for your country, there is no complacency. You’ve got to remember that it’s an international game. Everyone knows how few privileged players get the opportunity to represent the country. For me, every game is an opportunity to do something different, to learn something, to evolve,” he said. “There are no dead rubbers in my philosophy, in my ideology, and the same philosophy applies in the room as well.”
He said many in the squad were new to New Zealand conditions and praised how they adapted. India finished their previous assignment on the 17th and flew to New Zealand the next day, with one practice session before the series. India had already sealed the five-match series by winning the first three games. New Zealand then chased down 192 in Hamilton to take the fifth T20I, after India’s 87-run defeat in Auckland. The chase exposed further cracks in India’s bowling, leaving India with a 3-2 series win.