Latest news with #Gambhir
News18
17 hours ago
- Sport
- News18
'He Only Rejects': Gambhir Slammed For 'Not A Selector' Remark On Shreyas Iyer
Last Updated: Atul Wassan criticized Gautam Gambhir for his comment on Shreyas Iyer's omission from India's Test squad for the England tour, arguing that coaches influence team selection. Former India cricketer-turned-commentator Atul Wassan criticised Gautam Gambhir for his remark on Mumbai cricketer Shreyas Iyer's omission from the country's squad for the five-Test tour of England in the summer. A reporter asked Gambhir about the subject, and the men's head coach tried to avoid it with a curt, 'I am not a selector'. Wassan took an objection to it, saying that coaches have a significant role in these decisions and taunting Gambhir for being the one who 'rejects' players instead. 'He doesn't select, he only rejects," Wassan said on the Bails and Banter show on the OTTplay. 'The coach has a role in team selection, and selectors also listen to them before naming the squad," Wassan said. However, Wassan also backed Gambhir for having the team he desired, saying he deserves that freedom whether the selection works or not. 'If he (Gambhir) has been given this position, then I think he deserves to go with his feeling, whether it's right or wrong," Wassan added. Iyer last played Test matches for India against England at home in February 2024. He was dropped midway through the series due to poor form and a back issue. Since then, he has only participated in international white-ball formats. However, his performance in the most recent Ranji Trophy season was impressive: he scored 480 runs at an average of 68.57, including two centuries, as Mumbai reached the tournament's semi-finals. His place in the Test 11 was taken by the likes of Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan. For this England tour, his name was doing the rounds again because seniors Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma had both vacated their spots. In the press conference announcing the squad, chief selector Ajit Agarkar was also asked about his absence despite his IPL and white-ball form. Agarkar gave a more detailed answer. 'Shreyas Iyer had a good One-Day series," Agarkar said. 'When the reporter nudged him about Iyer's domestic form, Agarkar said, 'He did well in domestic but at the moment there is no room but if he keeps doing well, I am sure he will find a spot back in test cricket at some stage," he added. Shreyas will lead Punjab Kings in the second Qualifier for IPL 2025 against Mumbai Indians on Sunday. First Published:
NDTV
3 days ago
- Sport
- NDTV
Gautam Gambhir's 'Not A Selector' Comment Receives Brutal Jibe: "Only Rejects..."
The decision to include Shreyas Iyer in the Indian cricket team squad for the upcoming Test series against England has resulted in a lot of debate among fans and experts. Shreyas enjoyed a brilliant run of form in the last one year and although his IPL batting performance was quite impressive, he was not considered for the series. While chief selector Ajit Agarkar gave a detailed reason for not selecting him, head coach Gautam Gambhir just said that 'I am not the selector' - an indication that the coaching staff was not included in the process. During the 12th episode of Bails and Banter on the OTTplay app, former Indian pacer Atul Wassan took a slight dig at Gambhir - 'he doesn't select; he only rejects'. Wassan added that a coach plays a key role in team selection process. "If he (Gautam Gambhir) has been given this position, then I think he deserves to go with his feeling, whether it's right or wrong," he explained. Earlier, Gambhir hailed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for dedicating the final of IPL 2025 — scheduled for June 3 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad — to the Indian Armed Forces, in honour of Operation Sindoor, the military response to the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, which claimed 26 civilian lives. This gesture from the BCCI and IPL Governing Council marks a first-of-its-kind tribute in the league's history. The Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Army Staff, Chief of Naval Staff, and Chief of Air Staff have been officially invited to attend the grand finale. "It's an unbelievable step from BCCI. You know, we normally criticise the BCCI for various things, but this is unbelievable. This is something where I think BCCI has taken a great initiative from a point of view where the entire nation is one, and the entire nation has to salute the armed forces for what they do unconditionally, saving and protecting us," Gambhir told the reporters on the sidelines of the Goswami Ganesh Dutt Memorial Cricket Tournament. The IPL final, initially set for May 26, was rescheduled to June 3 following a week-long suspension of the tournament due to rising tensions between India and Pakistan. The escalation — and India's subsequent military action across the Line of Control and in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir — saw the nation rally around its armed forces, leading the BCCI to take a conscious call to align the tournament's climax with a patriotic tribute. Since the restart, every IPL match has opened with the national anthem, while digital boards across stadiums flash a constant message: 'Thank You, Armed Forces.' The initiative has received widespread appreciation from players and fans alike.
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First Post
4 days ago
- Sport
- First Post
'Gambhir doesn't select players; he only rejects': India coach slammed over Shreyas Iyer's exclusion from Test side
Shreyas Iyer's exclusion from India's Test squad for the England series has sparked controversy. Former cricketer has taken a dig at head coach Gautam Gambhir, who recently dismissed a question on Iyer's exclusion by saying, 'Main selector nahi hoon.'. read more Gautam Gambhir is being questioned after Shreyas Iyer was not picked in the Test side. Image: AP The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) recently announced an 18-member squad for the upcoming five-match Test series against England. Shreyas Iyer was one of the most surprising omissions as he was expected to make the side with Virat Kohli now retired from the longest format. Iyer was expected to be a part of the middle order. When asked about Iyer's exclusion, Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir responded by saying, 'Main selector nahi hoon' (I am not a selector). But this comment didn't go well with many, including former India cricketer Atul Wassan. 'Gambhir doesn't select players; he only rejects,' Wassan said on OTT Play while taking a dig at Gambhir's remark. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Gautam Gambhir criticised Wassan explained that the coach always has some role in team selection and that selectors usually listen to the coach's opinion before finalising the squad. 'The coach has a role in team selection, and selectors also listen to them before naming the squad,' Wassan said. Wassan, however, added that Gambhir deserves to select players on gut feeling because he is the coach right now. 'If Gambhir has been given this position, then I think he deserves to go with his feeling, whether it's right or wrong.' Iyer's exclusion also became a hot topic on social media. Many fans and experts have criticised the decision and questioned if it was really based on performance or something else. Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar recently said that the current leadership group picks players based on their own instincts rather than performance. 'Under Gambhir's stewardship and with Rohit not there anymore, I see a tendency in this management to pre-empt performances of individuals while making selections. As in, the dominating thought here is to apply their own view of the likely success and failure of players depending on conditions and opposition,' Manjrekar was quoted as saying by The Hindustan Times. Manjrekar cited the example of Sarfaraz Khan, who was not selected in the playing XI after three-four poor games last year. He was taken to Australia but did not play a match there and now he has b been dropped from the team altogether. 'Take the example of Sarfraz Khan. Three fifties and a 150 at home in four Tests and failures in only four innings after that and Sarfaraz does not get a single game in Australia. For the England tour too, he has been left out despite his performances in recent times outweighing Karun Nair's completely. So, this non-selection is not about performance, it's about someone important in the leadership group thinking Sarfaraz will not get runs in England and Australia, and Karun Nair will,' he said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Hindustan Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
‘Didn't get any call from Gautam Gambhir': Cheteshwar Pujara ‘ready' to join India's Test squad in England
With no Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin (all retired) and Mohammed Shami (dropped due to unsatisfactory fitness standards), the Shubman Gill-led India side is one of the least experienced ones to tour England for a full Test series. Sans Kohli and Rohit, India's batting line-up appears pale in comparison. Could the selectors have thought about Cheteshwar Pujara or Ajinkya Rahane as a stop-gap arrangement? They have done the same in the past. In fact, current India head coach Gautam Gambhir reportedly wanted Pujara in India's squad for the Australia tour but was denied by the selection committee. Did Gambhir place the same request this time too? When Pujara was asked whether Gambhir had contacted him before the Indian team's selection meeting, the veteran batter said no. "No, not yet," Pujara told Lallantop when he was asked, "Have you received a phone call from Gambhir yet?" The veteran of 103 Tests said he is ready to fulfil the role of top-order batter if required. "I am ready. I don't know if they will take me or not. But if I get a chance, yes, it will be an honour to represent the country again. As a cricketer, you always feel that as long as you are fit, as long as you are contributing, and if I have a good performance in domestic cricket, and I am preparing well, if I get a chance, yes, I will be more than happy to be part of the team," Pujara said. Pujara's comments came a day before India's squad announcement. The Ajit Agarkar-led selection did not fall back on either him or Ajinkya Rahane. They instead, decided to invest in youth by appointing Shubman Gill as the captain and Rishabh Pant the vice captain. Tamil Nadu batter Sai Sudharsan earned his maiden Test call-up while Karun Nair was brought back into the side after 8 years. Unlike in Australia, where Pujara found a lot of success, scoring 521 runs and 271 runs in India's victorious campaigns in 2018 and 2019, the right-hander does not particularly have a record boast of. Pujara averages 31 in England in 14 Tests. He has 806 runs with one century to his name. When Pujara was asked about the reports about Gambhir wanting him in Australia, he said he could have made a difference had he been there. "Look, I can't say much about the selection of the team. But I had a lot of hope that if I get a chance in Australia, I would be able to contribute for the team. Because the way my track record is on Australian soil, I had a confidence that if I get a chance there, I might be able to contribute for the team. Secondly, the way the team is playing right now, especially the way the Australian tour started, it was a very promising start. We won the first test match very well." "After that, the team's progression was not so good. But when you play in foreign conditions, whether it is Australia, South Africa, New Zealand or England, it is not easy to win or perform there. So many times, the players get criticism. But I also feel for the players, because the players work very hard and try to prepare very well. And if they don't succeed there, there is a different pressure for the player. So it is very important to balance that out."
NDTV
5 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Gautam Gambhir Breaks Silence On Snubbing Shreyas Iyer For England Test Series: "Not A..."
Head coach Gautam Gambhir on Wednesday sidestepped queries on Shreyas Iyer's exclusion from the Indian squad for England tour but lauded the BCCI for inviting the chiefs of the country's armed forces to attend the IPL final on June 3 in Ahmedabad. Iyer, who is in terrific form, could not find place in India's 18-man squad for the five-match Test series against England, starting June 20 in Leeds. India will be led by young Shubman Gill with Rishabh Pant as his deputy. "I am not a selector," was Gambhir's terse reply when he was about Iyer, who has led Punjab Kings to the IPL play-offs. Gambhir, a former BJP MP, though was effusive in his praise for the Indian cricket board for inviting the three chiefs of armed forces to attend IPL title clash, saying,"It's an unbelievable step". "We normally criticise the BCCI a lot on a lot of things, but this is something which is unbelievable. BCCI has taken an initiative from the point of view that the entire nation is one and the entire nation has to salute the armed forces for what they do unconditionally," he said. "So I feel that with the BCCI taking such an initiative we have got to give a lot of credit to the BCCI and more importantly to our armed forces who have been unconditionally helping and saving us and protecting us." General Upendra Dwivedi is the Chief of Army Staff, Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi is the Naval Chief and Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh is the Chief of Air Staff. BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia had announced that they have extended invitations to all Indian Armed Forces chiefs, top-ranked officers and soldiers for the IPL final to celebrate the success of Operation Sindoor. Operation Sindoor was triggered by the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 in which 26 people, mostly tourists, were gunned down by Pakistan-backed terrorists in the popular tourist destination in Jammu and Kashmir. Listen to the latest songs, only on
