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India head coach Gautam Gambhir opened up for the first time on his approach for three different teams in all the formats of cricket. He revealed that their is no possibility of India having separate teams for Tests, ODIs, and T20Is in the future. However, players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja who announced their retirement from the shortest format of the game can play ODI and Test for India.
Gambhir reckoned that the T20I format is transitioning, with world-class players retiring. All three-star cricketers (Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja) announced their T20I retirement after Men in Blue won the T20 World Cup 2024 defeating South Africa in the final.
“Going forward, these things happen. I can’t say right now that there are going to be three different teams. T20 will be in transition, with world-class players retiring. The more players that can play all the formats, the better,” said Gautam Gambhir.
Apart from Gambhir, India's chief selector Ajit Agarkar also reckoned that the management will look for players who are versatile while playing the different format of the game.
“Yeah, we don't plan on that. We just need to find the right combination of players who can suit different formats. On the same page, if you have players who can play all formats, then great" said Agarkar.
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Gambhir also urged senior players likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to be available for most of the games whereas Jasprit Bumrah can take rest.
“It is important for someone like Jasprit Bumrah. With Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma only playing two formats, I expect them (Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli) to be available for most games.” said ex-KKR mentor on workload management.
Agarkar also lavished praise on young opener Shubman Gill for his performance in all formats. The chief selector also hailed Gill's leadership qualities after Team India defeated Zimbabwe by 4-1 in a 5-match T20I series under his captaincy.
"Gill is a three-format player; he has shown decent leadership quality and can learn from Surya and Rohit all moving forward, said Agarkar on Shubman Gill.
Gautam Gambhir's first assignment will be India's tour of Sri Lanka where Men in Blue will play three T20Is followed by 3 ODIs scheduled to start from July 27.
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