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Gautam Gambhir is a straight and honest talker. He has never shied away from making honest comments, even if that has led to controversies. The former Indian cricket team opener, who was part of the 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 ODI World Cup-winning teams, was never a skipper for the national side. However, in the IPL he led Kolkata Knight Riders to the title. Recently an old video went viral on the social media, where Gautam Gambhir could be seen talking about his removed as vice-captain after India failed to qualify for the final of the CB series.
The interview was done by Lallantop YouTube channel a couple of years ago, and was re-shared by them on Monday.
“The CB series that was talking about, India did not qualify for the final, Australia and Sri Lanka did. I was the vice-captain, MS Dhoni was the captain. After that series were supposed to travel for a tri-series involving India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. We had not qualified for the final, before that we had lost the Test series 4-0. Dhoni was also under pressure, he was the captain,” Gautam Gambhir said in the video.
“If something was changed after the CB series it was the vice-captain. I was removed and Virat Kohli was made the vice-captain. In the history of India or any sport, has it happened even once when the vice-captain was removed but the captain was intact. You can confront me, if I am wrong. Duncan Fletcher was the coach then. I asked him what was the reason behind that decision. He said it was the selectors’ decision. I then asked him ‘For what, then, did you go to the meeting?”
Recently, Gautam Gambhir opined that Rohit should lead the Indian team in the 2024 T20 World Cup if he is in good form.
“If Rohit Sharma is in good form, he should be leading in the T20 World Cup or if he is not in good form, whoever is not in good form should not be picked for the T20 World Cup. Captaincy is a responsibility. First, you get yourself selected as a player and then you’re made captain. A captain should have a permanent position in the playing eleven, and the permanent place depends on the form,” Gautam Gambhir told ANI in a podcast.
The 2011 ODI World Cup winner said that age should not be a criterion when dropping a player from the squad and form should be the only criteria.
“Age should not be the criteria why a player should be dropped or picked, only form should be the criteria. Retirement is also an individual decision, no one can force him (a player) to retire, selectors have all the right not to pick them but ultimately one cannot take a bat or ball away from a player. Form is the topmost priority,” he added.
Rohit had a stellar ODI World Cup 2023 and played a crucial role for the ‘Men in Blue’ as an opener. The 36-year-old was the second-most run-getter in the tournament. He set the pace for India’s innings in matches and scored 597 runs at a strike rate of 125.94 in 11 innings.
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