Gambhir must tone it down with press, India succeeding despite his blunders: Manjrekar

Former India cricketer-turned commentator Sanjay Manjrekar feels Gautam Gambhir needs to tone down a bit in his press conferences and encourage tough questions. Gambhir was once again seen at his blunt best after India secured a heroic draw in the fourth Test against England at Old Trafford in Manchester.

India batted out the entire Day 5 as Washington Sundar (101*) and Ravindra Jadeja (107*) saw their team to stumps with their unbeaten 203-run stand after KL Rahul (90) and Shubman Gill (103) departed cheaply. Following India’s marvellous performance, Gambhir didn’t spare the opportunity to go after the critics, who had questioned his tactics and went on to say that whoever doubted Gill doesn’t know anything about cricket.

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The comments didn’t go down well with Manjrekar, who said that doubts on Gill’s leadership were valid and urged Gambhir to tone down and take tough questions.

“Yeah, you can tell there are certain questions that get under his skin - especially when people question Gill as a young captain and batter. And honestly, those are valid doubts. Even people who deeply understand cricket wonder whether this was the right time to hand him that opportunity. I just hope we can all understand this better. It's not about ‘you guys think’ and ‘we think’ - we're all part of the same industry and the same country. I'd just like to see him take a chill pill, relax a bit, and be open to tough questions. Whether that will happen, I’m not sure,” said Manjrekar on JioHotstar.

Furthermore, Manjrekar went on to say that India have done well in the series despite Gambhir’s tactical blunders.

“I feel India has done well despite some of his tactical decisions. Let's not forget: India lost 3-0 at home, New Zealand lost comfortably to Australia. The fight we’ve seen in this team? That’s down to the players. Because tactically, Gambhir hasn’t always made things easier - especially with some of his selections. And to suggest that Karun Nair ‘wasn’t dropped’... come on. You guys see it as a drop; for them, it's about 'picking the right team',” he added.

Questions have been raised on India’s team selection as they haven’t played Kuldeep Yadav in the series so far, despite his great record against England across formats. Gambhir and captain Gill have been more keen on extending their batting instead of bringing an attacking spinner in the XI.

Their gamble worked wonders for the team in Manchester as they managed to draw the game despite an injury to wicketkeeper batter Rishabh Pant. It remains to be seen, what changes will India make to the playing XI for the final Test, which begins on July 31 at the Oval.

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Published By: Rishabh Beniwal Published On: Jul 28, 2025

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