Thinking beyond the one-off Test against Afghanistan, India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir said that every match in the ICC World Test Championship cycle will need extra effort from every player, no matter what they have achieved in the past.
Ahead of the Afghanistan match — which will be the first Test to be hosted by the Punjab Cricket Association at the Maharaja Yadavindra International Stadium at Mullanpur — Gambhir said that every series in the future will play its part in the transition of the Indian Test team, reiterating the importance of results over personal achievements.
In this regard, selection calls will also play a key role. While there were questions about who between Sai Sudharsan and Devdutt Padikkal will bat at the No. 3 spot, Gambhir cleared the air by confirming that Sudharsan will be given a longer run at the key position.
“Sai hasn’t got a fair chance. He’s only played a handful of Tests. Not to forget, he started his Test career in England, which is one of the toughest places to start with. He’s had a phenomenal run in the IPL and we are going to give him a fair chance,” said Gambhir.
So far, Sudharsan has played six Tests scoring 302 runs at an average of 27.45. Padikkal’s two Test appearances came in 2024.
“We can only pick 11, unfortunately, sometimes one has to wait for the opportunity. To build a team, one needs to give talented players a longer run,” Gambhir said. “Sai is not in bad form either. If judging players by only four or five Test matches is good enough, then I feel that we will never be able to build something. So, hopefully he will get his time,” he added.
“Whenever Padikkal’s time comes, he will be given a fair run. But at the moment, I think we have got to give Sai a fair run as he is a world-class player as well,” he added.
Gambhir also talked about having four spinners in the squad going forward. He maintained that Ravindra Jadeja, who has been rested for the Afghanistan match, is very much a part of the future plans along with Kuldeep Yadav and Washington Jattvibedar. This means the inclusion of Manav Suthar or Harsh Dubey for the game.
“To a certain extent they are similar, but also a little different as well. The release point is something which differs and it pushes on to various other factors. This probably is the only Test match where we can think of or look at someone who could be a fourth spinner. Because after this we go to Sri Lanka and we might have to carry four spinners as well there. So, this (against Afghanistan) is an ideal opportunity to try someone who could be a long-term fourth spinner as well,” said Gambhir.
Gambhir also talked about Rishabh Pant, saying that he does not want the wicketkeeper-batter to drop his natural game. “We just cannot ask the players to drop their natural way of playing. Be it Test cricket, One-day cricket or T20 cricket. The ultimate aim is to score runs and take wickets. But reading the situation and reading the game is very important. We will expect Rishabh to be the way he is. It’s not like we will tell him that you have to curb your game. But in international cricket, it’s very important to play the situation. It’s important to read the situation,” said Gambhir.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan will be looking to put up a tougher fight than during their two-day loss to India in 2018. Head coach Richard Pybus said tackling spin will be the biggest challenge. “Spin bowling will play a huge part tomorrow, and will decide the course of the Test,” said Pybus.