New Delhi [India], November 17 : Former cricketer Sourav Ganguly backed India head coach Gautam Gambhir ahead of the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) against Australia and asked everyone to give the 43-year-old a chance.
With a 3-0 series whitewash against New Zealand at home, India need to win the series by 4-0 to punch their ticket to feature in London for the WTC final for the third successive time directly.
Gambhir's remarks on Aussie legend Ricky Ponting following his comments expressing concern over star batter Virat Kohli's form triggered a clash of words ahead of the first Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Perth Test from November 22 onwards.
As Ponting expressed concern over Virat scoring two centuries since 2020 in Tests and backed the veteran to come good in Australian conditions, the head coach Gambhir said in the team's pre-departure presser that the multi-time World Cup winning skipper should worry about Australia instead of Virat. In return, Ponting clarified later that his comments were not a jibe at Virat and referred to the Indian head coach as a "prickly character".
Ganguly said that just because India lost the Test series against New Zealand and the ODI series to Sri Lanka the "straight talk" from Gambhir has not been looked at nicely.
"All I will say is let him be. I saw some criticism on what he said in the press conference. It is the way he is. Let him be. When he won the IPL, he was the same, you were going gaga over him. Just because he has lost three test matches and a one-day series against Sri Lanka, the straight talk has not been looked at nicely. But that is the way he is," Ganguly said while speaking to Revsportz.
The former Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president added that one cannot pass judgement on Gambhir as it's only been two months since he was appointed the head coach of the Indian men's cricket team.
"Let him say whatever he likes for that will help him. Ultimately you have to go and play the game hard. That is the way it is and it has happened for ages against Australian cricket teams. That makes this series even more competitive and even more followed by people. So let it be, let's give Gambhir a chance. You have given him a job. In two months you cannot pass a judgment on him," he added.
The much anticipated Border-Gavaskar series between India and Australia will begin on November 22, with the first Test at Perth.
The second Test, scheduled for December 6 to 10 at Adelaide Oval, will feature the exciting day-night format under the stadium's lights. After that, fans will turn their attention to The Gabba in Brisbane for the third Test, which will be held from December 14 to 18.
The customary Boxing Day Test, set for December 26 to 30 at Melbourne's storied Melbourne Cricket Ground, will bring the series to its penultimate stage.
The fifth and final Test, to take place at the Sydney Cricket Ground from January 3 to 7, will serve as the series climax, promising a dramatic conclusion to an exciting contest.
India's squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Ravindra Jadeja, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (Wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Virat Kohli, Prasidh Krishna, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Rishabh Pant (Wk), KL Rahul, Harshit Rana, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar.