New Delhi, 3 February 2025: India head coach Gautam Gambhir outlined a bold vision for the team’s T20 International strategy, pushing for an aggressive, high-risk approach aimed at regularly scoring 250-260 runs.
Speaking after India’s commanding 4-1 series win over England, Gambhir said the team had fully embraced this mindset.
“We don’t want to fear losing. We want to play high-risk, high-reward cricket, and the players have adopted that ideology really well,” Gambhir told the host broadcaster after the final match in Mumbai on Sunday.
India’s aggressive intent was evident throughout the series. In the fourth T20I in Pune, the team continued attacking despite losing wickets, managing 181 for 9. In the final game in Mumbai, they raced to 247 for 9, marking their fourth-highest T20I total.
Gambhir acknowledged the risks of such an approach but insisted the rewards outweigh occasional failures. “If we want to get to 250-260 regularly, there will be games where we get bowled out for 120-130. That’s the nature of T20 cricket. Unless you take those risks, you won’t get big rewards. We are on the right track, and come big tournaments, we want to continue playing this way,” he said.
Pointing to Abhishek Sharma’s blistering 135 off 54 balls, Gambhir said India would continue backing young talents. “We need to be patient with players like Abhishek. I haven’t seen a better T20 hundred against bowlers consistently clocking 140-150 kph,” he said.
The head coach also praised Varun Chakravarthy for reinventing himself. “His transformation from IPL to international cricket has been phenomenal. This series was a benchmark because England is a high-quality side. The way he bowled on batting-friendly wickets and handled tough overs was impressive,” he said. Chakravarthy emerged as the highest wicket-taker in the series, finishing with 14 wickets at an average of 9.85 and an economy rate of 7.66.
Amid speculations of rifts within the Indian dressing room following the team’s struggles in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Gambhir dismissed concerns, suggesting winning solves everything. “These players have played a lot of cricket against each other. When results go your way, everything falls into place. They know what it means to represent 140-150 crore Indians,” he said.
Addressing the controversy over Harshit Rana replacing Shivam Dube as a concussion substitute in the Pune match, Gambhir responded with a wry remark: “He (Dube) probably bowled four overs today.”
