The Gautam Gambhir era in Indian cricket started with the Sri Lanka Tour. While India won the T20I series, they lost the ODI series. Indian cricket team got a long break after that and will next be playing in a Test series against Bangladesh, starting September 19. That series will start Gambhir’s real test. Rishabh Pant is going to be crucial cog in India’s scheme of things in the coming years. Both Gambhir and Pant played their national level cricket for Delhi team. In an interview, Pant talked about the change in Indian cricket under Gautam Gambhir.
“What is the biggest change that can happen under Gautam Gambhir and how it can take Indian cricket forward?” the anchor asked Pant.
“I feel Rahul bhai was very balanced as a human being and as a coach. It could be both good and bad, because in cricket there can be positives. This is upon the individuals whether to focus on the positives and negatives, and it depends on where individuals want to focus. Gauti bhai (Gambhir) is more aggressive, he’s very one-sided about the fact that you have to win. But you need to find the right balance and improve. This is the best part of international cricket,” Pant said on Jio Cinema.
Rishabh Pant warned against taking Bangladesh lightly in the upcoming two-Test series, and stressed on the need for India to keep improving themselves to stay ahead of the competition. Bangladesh, who recently blanked Pakistan 2-0 at Rawalpindi, will face Rohit Sharma‘s side in the first Test at Chennai from September 19 before moving to Kanpur.
India will play a total of 10 Tests within the next five months as the series against Bangladesh will be followed by three Tests against New Zealand at home in October-November before moving to Australia for the five-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
“Asian countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka perform well in Asian conditions because they are accustomed to the wickets,” Pant told Jio Cinema.
“As the Indian cricket team, we focus solely on our own standards and how we can improve. Regardless of the opposition, we strive to play with the same intensity and give our 100 percent every single day,” he said.
Pant said no series can be taken lightly with the margins between the teams decreasing in international cricket.
“Pressure will always be there because in international cricket, you can’t take any series lightly. The margin between winning and losing is very small, and nowadays, the gap between international teams isn’t much either,” he said.
Pant said playing in the Duleep Trophy ahead of a long season of Test cricket will give the players quality match practice while young cricketers at domestic level will benefit from the presence of international stars.
