Ex-KKR Star Slams Gautam Gambhir's Critics: 'Narratives Change Faster Than...'
Manvinder Bisla criticized social media fans for ignoring Gautam Gambhir's role in India's success in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, despite his contribution to the Edgbaston win.
Former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) player Manvinder Bisla has called out the hypocrisy of social media fans over head coach Gautam Gambhir's contribution to India's success in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. Pointing at how Gambhir was criticized for India's loss at Headingley but not praised for the Edgbaston win, he said narratives were changing 'faster than the scorecard', and urged critics to include him in credits.
Gambhir stuck to the batting-depth-first formula at Headingley, despite it not working in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. India again lacked support for Jasprit Bumrah as all-rounder Shardul Thakur wasn't used much while failing with the bat and succumbed to a five-wicket loss. Despite calls to include a wicket-taker in Kuldeep Yadav, the team doubled down on the plan and dropped specialist batter Sai Sudharsan as well.
The Edgbaston 11, with three pacers and two all-rounders, performed better than their English counterparts, with Akash Deep taking ten wickets and Mohammed Siraj seven. The batters contributed heavily to set up the win earlier, with Shubman Gill smashing 269 and 162 in the two innings. It ended in a 336-run win.
'Before the Test: @GautamGambhir messed up the XI. After the win: @ShubmanGill era begins. Narratives change faster than the scorecard. PS: Both are leaders — credit goes to whole team for this famous win. 🔥🇮🇳 #INDvsENGTest #famouswin #TeamIndia"
Bisla played under Gambhir's captaincy and KKR, between 2011-2014, scoring 89 off 48 balls against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the final of the 2012 IPL to guide them to a 5-wicket win.
Gambhir has been under pressure ever since taking the job after winning IPL 2024 as KKR's mentor. Under him, India won a home series against Bangladesh but went on to lose the next two against New Zealand at home and Australia away, with the former being a humiliating first whitewash.
Gill, meanwhile, is the fifth youngest captain in India's Test history, filling not only the big shoes of Rohit Sharma but also Virat Kohli at number four. The remaining three Tests, starting at Lord's on Thursday, could determine where this new era of Indian cricket is headed.
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