Former Indian cricket fast bowler Ashish Nehra has strongly criticized the strategy of head coach Gautam Gambhir in the ongoing ODI series against Sri Lanka.
The first ODI match between India and Sri Lanka ended in a draw, and in the second ODI, Sri Lanka defeated India to take the lead in the series.
Nehra says that this series should have been an important opportunity to test India’s new talent, but Gambhir missed this opportunity by including experienced players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in this series.
Ashish Nehra said while speaking on Sony Sports,
“India’s next series is after 2-3 months, which is a rare thing for us. So for players like Rohit and Kohli… I think there was a better chance to give opportunities to other players during this series. I know Gambhir is the new coach and he wants to spend some time with the experienced players, but it is not that he does not know both of them.”
It is worth noting that earlier there were reports that both Rohit and Kohli would not play in this ODI series, but Gambhir requested both of them to play during their first series. Gambhir believed that spending time with experienced players could be beneficial for them. This series is Gautam Gambhir’s first series as India’s head coach, and in such a situation his priority can be understood.
Commenting on this, Nehra said that Gautam Gambhir is not a foreign coach who is trying to correct the equation with Kohli and Rohit.
Regarding this, he said, “He is not a foreign coach who wants to correct his equation with Kohli and Rohit. So this was a good opportunity for him to try new players and Rohit and Kohli could play when the domestic season starts. I am not saying that this is the wrong way, but this could have been one of the strategies in this series.”
It is noteworthy that this ODI series is the first series for Rohit and Kohli after the final of the ODI World Cup 2023, in which India lost the title match against Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Nehra says that this series could have been a strategic opportunity for Gambhir, where he tried to shape the future of Indian cricket by giving opportunities to the youth.
This criticism of Nehra indicates that Gambhir may need to change his strategy. Giving opportunities to new talents and balancing them with experience is important for the long-term success of cricket.
In such a situation, it will be interesting to see what changes Gambhir makes in his strategy in the upcoming matches and in which direction Indian cricket goes.
