Gavaskar's views echoed, Gautam Gambhir backed with spotlight shifts on players after debacle: 'Not just about coach'

Uthappa He pointed out that while concerns over Gambhir’s coaching style are fair, the conversation has largely ignored the role of the players themselves.

India’s Test cricket setup finds itself under serious scrutiny after the 0-2 drubbing in South Africa laid bare the team’s flaws and the growing pains of a shaky transition phase, prompting calls for a rethink in both their approach and selection method. The downturn has squarely shifted the spotlight onto head coach Gautam Gambhir, whose red-ball strategies have fallen flat—most notably at home—resulting in two damaging whitewashes over the past year. Yet, it’s also true that his blueprint has delivered in limited-overs cricket, with India lifting both the Champions Trophy and the Asia Cup under his watch.

Gautam Gambhir has been facing the scruitny after SA Test series loss.(PTI)

Amid the backlash, Gambhir has found support from Sunil Gavaskar, who pointed out that the players must also take responsibility for their technical lapses on the field. Former India batter Robin Uthappa echoed a similar view, throwing his weight behind the head coach.

Uthappa referenced Sunil Gavaskar’s remarks while acknowledging the genuine concerns around India’s muddled batting order, frequent changes, and an overreliance on all-rounders. He stressed that Gambhir’s methods may suit white-ball cricket, but Test cricket demands a different, more specialist-driven approach.

“I liked what Sunny Gavaskar said. Sunny G said you can call for his head if you called for his extension after the Champions Trophy triumph or the Asia Cup. People need someone to blame this on,” Uthappa said on his YouTube show with Jarrod Kimber.

“Yes, there have been a lot of things said, and I understand where it comes from. People are saying there is no steady batting order, there are too many changes, fewer specialists and more all-rounders in the squad. Those are all very valid points. I think there needs to be a relook at how Test cricket is approached. That’s certainly valid. There are grievances about his style of coaching. What’s good is that a lot of what Gauti is doing works in white-ball cricket. But will that necessarily work in red-ball cricket? Not always. I definitely think you need specialists there,” he said.

He pointed out that while concerns over Gambhir’s coaching style are fair, the conversation has largely ignored the role of the players themselves and the responsibility they must shoulder, especially in the demanding arena of Test cricket.

“But one thing we are all missing is the fact that no one is really talking about the players and the ownership they should be taking. Everyone is going after the coach — his record and India’s record in the last year.”

“A lot of valid points have been made about his style of coaching and the discrepancies that exist at this point in time. But very little has been spoken about what the players are doing right now and what they should be doing, especially in Test cricket," he added.

“Ownership has to be taken by the players”: Uthappa

Across both Tests, South Africa simply outclassed India. The Proteas’ bowlers extracted far more from the conditions, and their batters handled the turning tracks with far greater composure, exposing India’s struggles under pressure.

Uthappa further stressed that the accountability crisis runs deeper than coaching tactics, urging players to shoulder their share of responsibility. He highlighted that India’s batters must show greater discipline, resilience and situational awareness, noting that honest conversations about player accountability are missing while the blame continues to be directed elsewhere.

“Ownership has to be taken by the players. People need to put their hands up more. It’s not just about the coach. We need to do better as well. The batters need to defend well and grind out situations. They need to play the situation; they can’t simply try and hit out. Those are deeper conversations that aren’t being had. A lot of blame is being put on different people. But the players are taking very little responsibility at the moment," he added.