New Delhi: Former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi has extended support to India head coach Gautam Gambhir amid criticism for him from all corners over the team’s disastrous run in Test cricket. India suffered their first-ever Test series defeat at home against New Zealand after the Kiwis whitewashed them 3-0 in their last Test assignment.
India did bounce back to beat Australia comprehensively by 295 runs in the 1st Test of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 but suffered a crushing 10-wicket loss in the 2nd Test in Adelaide on Sunday as the hosts levelled the five-match series 1-1. India are under intense pressure to bounce back in the series with a spot in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2024-25 final on the line.
Afridi and Gambhir were not the best of friends both on and off the pitch while representing their respective countries, however, the former Pakistan all-rounder has still backed his Indian counterpart to succeed as coach. Speaking to Pakistan’s Geo News, Afridi insisted any system needs time to be implemented and that Gambhir needs to be backed.
“Gautam has been the coach of the Kolkata Knight Riders and won, which means he has delivered something that the team won. Now has the responsibility of coaching the Indian team. Coaching the national team is a very big responsibility. He has been appointed recently. Every system takes time to take effect,” said Afridi.
“If it is any person, I say give him time at the least,” added the former Pakistan all-rounder.
How has Gautam Gambhir fared as India head coach?
Gambhir has endured a mixed start to his tenure as the head coach of the Indian cricket team. He took over from Rahul Dravid as the head coach of the national team after leading KKR to their 3rd IPL title. In his first major assignment in Sri Lanka, India clinched the T20I series 3-0 but suffered a humiliating 3-0 whitewash in the ODI series against the hosts, their first ODI series defeat against Sri Lanka since 1997.
India then went on to beat Bangladesh 2-0 in the two-match Test series at home before registering a 3-0 clean sweep against the visitors in the T20I series. However, India slipped to one of their worst-ever Test series defeats at home after New Zealand thrashed them 3-0 to clinch their maiden Test series victory on Indian soil.
Gambhir’s future is under scrutiny in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 and a lot will depend on how India fare in the high-profile series. The scoreline currently stands 1-1 with both India and Australia winning a Test apiece in the first two matches. There are three more Tests remaining and India need to win all three to be certain of a spot in the WTC 2023-25 final.
Former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi has backed under-fire India head coach Gautam Gambhir amid India’s struggles in Test cricket. Afridi said Gambhir needs to be backed and given time to implement his system. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
