Head coach Gautam Gambhir openly admitted that he is extremely hurt after India's Test series defeat against New Zealand. It was India's head coach Gambhir who came to address press ahead of third Test against New Zealand, which will start from November 1 at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. India suffered crushing defeats in both the Tests while New Zealand looked evidently dominating the hosts in both the departments, be it bowling or batting.
Whenever you lose it hurts and it should hurt and it will make you better: Gautam Gambhir
Notably, it was India's second series loss in Gambhir's era. While reacting to India's dismal performance recently which cost them the Test series defeat against New Zealand, the former India captain said that he is not going to sugercoat and openly accepted that he is hurt. However he wants Indian players to take that hurt and improve and keep moving forward.
"I am not going to sugar-coat. it hurts. whenever you lose it hurts and it should hurt and it will make you better. For youngsters, it is good that they are hurt. Take that hurt, keep improving and keep moving forward," Gambhir said in the pre-match press conference.
Gambhir was also asked about him getting angry after defeats, to which he replied by saying that it's a nice perception to have.
"On him being angry after defeats: It's a nice perception to have. It's different when you are coach. It's important to have your arms around your players. It's a lot different than being a player," he added.
It was India's first Test series at home in 12 years. The second Test in Pune, which concluded on October 26, resulted in a 113-run defeat for the hosts. This followed their earlier loss by eight wickets in Bengaluru. In three of the four innings, India's batting performance was particularly concerning, with the team managing scores of 46, 156, and 245. The Indian batters struggled to cope with both swing and spin bowling conditions. Gambhir also made it clear that it wasn't just the batters who were at fault and said that everyone has the responsibility to step up when the team needs them the most.
"Everyone has the responsibility, I cannot say just the batters have let us down,"
Addressing the potential impact of T20 cricket on batting techniques, Gambhir expressed concern, stating:
"But the most successful players irrespective of the formats always had strong defence. We need to keep telling people the importance of defence and we are working hard on it and we will see results in future." Asked about the Wankhede Stadium pitch around which there has been a lot of speculation, he said, "It is just a good wicket. Very difficult for anyone to judge before both teams have batted on it," he concluded.
