Amid his poor run, there was also speculation that he had developed serious differences with Gambhir and that there was dissension in the dressing room due to the poor performance of him and other senior batters, including Virat Kohli.
Domestic veterans Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajat Patidar and Rinku Singh could keep the team management interested going forward in Test cricket.
Jitesh Sharma, who has emerged as India's preferred wicketkeeper-batter in T20 format with less than two months left for the World Cup, has played down his 'competition' with Sanju Samson in the squad, saying it only brings out his "A-game" to the fore, strengthening the side.
'Emotions run high. You are expected to win pretty much every game. You are expected to win because you have been doing that consistently. You have the strength on your side to achieve those kinds of milestones and secure those kinds of victories. So, accountability and appraisal are always going to be there. So, it goes hand in hand.'
The national selection committee led by Ajit Agarkar, in all likelihood, will select identical squads for the five-match T20I series against New Zealand and the marquee ICC T20 World Cup, a BCCI source said on Friday.
Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh finds it a bit unfortunate that the future of legends like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli is being decided by "people who have not achieved much" but he nonetheless expects the duo to carry on till the 2027 ODI World Cup.
The Proteas arrive high on confidence, having fought out a hard-earned 1-1 draw in Pakistan last month under challenging conditions.
Rishabh Pant's place in the playing eleven is far from guaranteed, while Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy are locked in a tight contest for the additional all-rounder's slot as India confront several selection dilemmas ahead of the first ODI against South Africa in Ranchi.
Working with Abhishek has made me understand how to become a coach: Yuvraj Singh
Sai Sudharsan and Dhruv Jurel faced spinners while wearing only one pad to counter the turning deliveries, a method that comes with an element of risk, in Kolkata on Monday.
'We would like to believe and back ourselves to know these conditions or adapt to these conditions a lot faster even if we find them slightly different, as compared to, say, somebody who is brought up in Johannesburg and has played all his cricket at the Wanderers ground.'
The 0-3 loss to New Zealand at home last year still haunts India head coach Gautam Gambhir and he also doesn't want his players to forget that rare drubbing in Tests as they build for the future.
Tilak Varma, India's match-winner in the Asia Cup final against Pakistan, received a grand welcome on his return to Hyderabad on Tuesday.
'I have decided to donate my match fees from this tournament to support our Armed Forces and the families of the victims who suffered from the Pahalgam terror attack. You always remain in my thoughts. Jai Hind.'
'His free-spirited character perfectly matches T20 cricket's essence, it's about freedom and expression.'
Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill rewrote the record books on Sunday, putting together a blistering 105-run stand-the best-ever opening partnership for India against Pakistan in T20Is.
Despite India's seven-wicket win in Delhi, Gambhir called the surface 'alarming' and stressed the need for more balanced wickets to keep Test cricket alive.
The Bellerive Oval is one ground where the side boundaries are smaller in size, hence hitting the right lengths would be paramount considering anything short would be flying over cover, point, square leg or mid-wicket on either side of the fence.
There are three aspects of the decision taken jointly by Agarkar and Gambhir with the blessings of someone very powerful in Indian cricket ecosystem. First, they are on same page that both Rohit and Virat Kohli aren't exactly in their scheme of things for the 2027 World Cup.
Gambhir didn't name him 'most stylish'. Instead, he chose Shubman Gill for that tag
Indian opener KL Rahul ended a long home-soil century drought, scoring his 11th Test hundred in India's opening match against the West Indies at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Friday. He reached 100 off 197 balls, hitting 12 stylish fours.
'Am I the reason team will lose? Kuldeep might think, I am bowling so well, even after that I am not playing, then am I the problem in this team?'
India won 18 series at home over 12 years, until it all unravelled late last year against New Zealand.
'Many things that are happening are not good for Indian cricket.'
Matthew Sandery, head curator at the Dubai international stadium, was spotted near Gautam Gambhir and Sitanshu Kotak, but did not ask them to keep away. Incidentally, the BCCI, being the hosts, can even suggest the kind of wicket they would need for the match.
Former Indian cricketer Mohammed Kaif hailed opener KL Rahul following his century against West Indies at Ahmedabad, saying that his biggest strength is "belief and hard work" and slammed his critics for 'changing opinions' after few great innings.
With Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid at the helm, India bounced back from their heartbreak of losing in the final of 2023 ODI World Cup at home to Australia by winning the next two ICC events -- the 2024 T20 World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy.
The years spent in domestic cricket helped him sharpen his skills and know more about his own game.
India head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Suryakumar Yadav closely inspected the pitch of the Dubai International Stadium on the eve of their highly-debated Asia Cup clash against Pakistan.
Ravindra Jadeja's omission from the India ODI squad for Australia tour raised a few eyebrows but the veteran all-rounder was not surprised as the selection committee and team management had "communicated" to him about their inability to pick him.
stroked 69 not out off 53 balls to steer India to a famous five-wicket victory in the title clash, dedicated his knock to "all the Indians".
Varun Chakravarthy said head coach Gautam Gambhir has instilled in the Indian team a mentality that leaves no room for mediocrity and where losing is not an option.
Fresh from a hard-fought 2-2 draw in England, Shubman Gill's men will be eager to translate their overseas resilience into home dominance.
'Should a player with such deep understanding of the ODI format be removed from captaincy when neither age nor performance has dimmed his brilliance?', asks veteran cricket correspondent K R Nayar.
IMAGES from Day 3 of the 2nd Test between India and West Indies in New Delhi on Sunday.
While Samson thrives as an opener, chances of batting at the top look slim.
Against Bangladesh, Samson wasn't even considered good enough to come inside the top seven of the line-up and that begs a question as to what is he doing in the team if he isn't good enough to come ahead of Axar Patel.
The 'Impact Player' in IPL might have restricted Chennai Super Kings' Shivam Dube's role but 'India's Shivam Dube' aspires to be a full-fledged all-rounder backed by head coach Gautam Gambhir and helped by bowling coach Morne Morkel.
Kuldeep Yadav's artistry was too much for a clueless UAE to comprehend as India hardly broke a sweat in an emphatic nine-wicket victory in their Asia Cup opener in Dubai on Wednesday.
In the last 10 games that United have played under Amorim's stewardship, they had lost six games, while under Gambhir, India have lost eight out of their last 11 Tests.
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