Gautam Gambhir reacts on Indian team performance after IND vs ENG 3rd T20I

The Indian team suffered a crushing 125-run defeat in the third match of the ongoing five-match T20I series against England, drawing widespread criticism. Having previously been swept 0-2 by Ireland and now trailing 0-2 against England, Team India has missed out on winning a second consecutive series. In the third T20I, India won the toss and invited England to bat first; the hosts posted a total of 201/7. In response, the Indian team was bundled out for just 76 runs.

Following this, every decision made by the management came under scrutiny—whether it was dropping Sanju Samson or promoting Axar Patel and Harshit Rana up the batting order. During the post-match press conference, media personnel asked Head Coach Gambhir about the reasons behind dropping Sanju Samson. He stated that there was complete clarity between him and Samson regarding the matter but added that the details of that conversation could not be made public.

The first thing is that regarding the clarity Sanju Samson needed, he has been given that from my side. That's a conversation strictly between the player and the head coach. That conversation is not going to come outside," Gambhir said in the press conference on Tuesday.

"Regarding Sanju, we are very clear. What he has done for India has been phenomenal, and sometimes you just have to look at the form of a certain player. There is no hard and fast rule that he cannot make a comeback in this series," he added.

Samson had failed to perform well in the two T20Is against Ireland and the first match of the England series. After this, he was dropped in favour of 15-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi. However, Suryavanshi has also failed to make a significant impact. Nevertheless, Gambhir reiterated that he had clearly explained Samson's role within the Indian T20I team to him. 

Gambhir stated that international cricket is not about individual players but about team combinations. Suryavanshi was included in the squad because the management had faith in the opening partnership between him and Abhishek Sharma. However, the fault does not lie solely with Suryavanshi; the entire Indian team has performed poorly during the UK tour, whether against Ireland or in the ongoing series against England.

"International cricket is about results, so whatever we feel is the best combination to give us that result, we play that combination and that playing XI. I've always been a big believer that everyone needs to earn their place and the right to play for India."

"Regarding adaptability, obviously we haven't adapted well. That's the reality, be it Ireland or England. If we had adapted well or played better cricket, we probably would not have lost four games in a row," said the India coach.

Gautam Gambhir has repeatedly emphasised the need for players to understand the game better. He also highlighted the changes the team has undergone since winning the World Cup. 

"I think we just haven't played well," Gambhir said after England took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the T20I series on Tuesday (July 7). "You don't become a bad team after four games. Sometimes, if the opposition plays better than you... sometimes you don't assess the conditions better, you don't read the conditions better. Reading the game is equally important as well. We haven't done that since Ireland." 

The head coach acknowledged that the team is employing a "high-risk, high-reward" approach, noting that such outcomes can occur with this style of play. Team India has so far failed to fully adapt to the conditions during the UK tour, which is a cause for concern—particularly regarding the batsmen, who have appeared to struggle against bounce and fast bowling. 

"I don't know what England is going to try and do, but we have got to keep getting better at playing pace. And more importantly, I thought that today was probably one of the off days, because if you see the last two T20Is, we have got 190 on the board in both. So sometimes when you play a high-risk kind of game, these things can happen," Gambhir said. 

Team India is now set to play the fourth match of the series in Bristol on July 9. India has already missed the opportunity to win the series; while winning the remaining two matches would result in a draw, the team's current form makes an Indian victory seem quite unlikely.