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India To Use Multiple Teams Under Gautam Gambhir?

India appointed Gautam Gambhir to take over as the new head coach of the India men’s cricket team. He will take charge of the team for the upcoming away series against Sri Lanka, which includes 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is starting on 27th July 2024. This series is crucial as it will be the first under Gambhir’s leadership and will set the tone for his tenure. Team India usually plays with similar players across all three formats, but this may change with the appointment of Gautam Gambhir as head coach. In this article, we discuss why Gambhir may use multiple teams, the pros and cons of doing this, and whether Gambhir indirectly forced some Indian cricketers to retire.

Will India Use Three Different Teams?

It looked like India was headed towards using different players in different formats of the game, possibly employing three individual teams for T20Is, ODIs, and Tests. However, the chances of this happening have drastically reduced after Gautam Gambhir spoke about players playing in all three formats. He said:

“I’m a very strong believer in one thing: if you’re good, you should be playing all the three formats. I’ve never been a big believer in injury management, you get injured, you go get recovered. As simple as it gets. When you’re playing international cricket, and you’re good enough, you ask any of the top players, and they want to play all three formats.”

It will be interesting to see if, after these comments, India will opt to use similar players in all three formats or opt to keep the overlap amongst players to a minimum. Players like Jasprit Bumrah are obviously expected to play across all formats, but it will be interesting to see how many chances there are and in which format the upcoming youngsters get a chance to make their mark.

What Are The Positives Of Multiple Teams?

Having separate teams across different formats has its positives. The overall workload on the players is drastically reduced. Due to this reduction in in-game time, players get more time to rest their bodies and recover from all the rigorous routines they put their bodies through. Multiple teams also mean more chances for youngsters to break into the Indian team and showcase their talents on an international stage.

As the overlap of players will be kept to a minimum across different formats, new players can be tried in various positions, which will help further the talent pool and increase the squad depth. This also means that you can select players in the format where they are the strongest. They can concentrate on bettering their game in that particular format and hone their skills according to what the format demands.

What Are The Downsides Of Multiple Teams?

While playing on separate teams has its benefits, it has various downfalls as well. The biggest problems are the chemistry between the teams and the uncertainty of not knowing what your role is. With different teams, there is still bound to be some overlap with players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah playing across multiple formats. However, the role you take depends on who you are playing with. If Rohit Sharma opens with Shubman Gill in ODIs, he may have to start more aggressively and take on bowlers.

However, if he plays with a similar mindset in test matches while opening with Yashasvi Jaiswal, it may become a problem as both players are aggressive and losing early wickets could lead to a collapse. This is why many teams around the world prefer to play similar teams across all formats so that most of the players know their role in the team. Playing with similar faces regularly also helps boost team chemistry and morale, which can be a big factor in a team sport.

India’s Potential T20 Squad

Suryakumar Yadav has few inspirations to emulate as India's T20I captain 🇮🇳🏆 pic.twitter.com/CSWzVQmj24

— Sport360° (@Sport360) July 22, 2024

The T20 format keeps becoming progressively more aggressive every year. India has some very talented youngsters coming up who will fit right in the team with the retirement of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja from T20 internationals. One such player who was sensational in IPL 2024 is Abhishek Sharma. He lit up IPL 2024 while opening with Travis Head for Sunrisers Hyderabad. His aggressive mindset and attacking prowess can help India get off to a very good start, and he can be the perfect replacement for Rohit Sharma in T20 internationals. His IPL statistics from the last three seasons have been mentioned below.

Abhishek Sharma’s IPL Stats (2022-2024):

Rinku Singh is another player who will surely end up being a regular in India’s T20 squad in the future. In fact, he has already managed to impress the Indian national team to such an extent that many expected him to be a part of the Indian squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup. While he missed out this time, he will surely be even more determined that he is not just a part of the squad but a part of the starting XI in the 2026 T20 World Cup. His stats for the Indian national team in T20 internationals can be seen below.

Rinku Singh’s Stats For Team India In T20Is:

Starting XI

• Yashasvi Jaiswal
• Abhishek Sharma
• Suryakumar Yadav
• Rishabh Pant (Wk)
• Hardik Pandya
• Rinku Singh
• Axar Patel
• Harshit Rana
• Kuldeep Yadav
• Arshdeep Singh
• Jasprit Bumrah

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India’s Potential ODI Squad

Credit: English Jagran

India has one of the strongest squads in the ODI format, and they proved this by reaching the 2023 World Cup final. However, they lost in the final to Australia. This just means that they will have to bolster their squad even further before the next World Cup. As India has such a strong squad, most of the players as of now will remain the same, and rightfully so.

Shreyas Iyer is one of these players who can be crucial for India in ODIs. While he is not the first pick when it comes to T20Is and Tests, his game is wonderfully suited to play ODIs. He has played ODI’s since 2017 and has been a crucial player for India. He has scored 2382 runs at an average of 49.6 and a strike rate of 101.2. India will hope Iyer can keep up his ODI form and play a key role in helping them win for many years to come.

Shreyas Iyer’s Stats For Team India In ODIs:

Mohammed Shami was the leading wicket-taker in the 2023 World Cup. He picked up 24 wickets in just seven games and proved to be one of India’s most important players. While India will also be finding other options, he is one of their most reliable bowlers for now, and they will surely turn to him for the time being. While he had fallen down the pecking order in recent years, his comeback in 2023 will surely instil the selectors with faith in him, and he will be ready to perform for India whenever called upon.

Mohammed Shami’s Stats For Team India In ODIs:

Starting XI

• Rohit Sharma
• Shubman Gill
• Virat Kohli
• Shreyas Iyer
• KL Rahul (Wk)
• Hardik Pandya
• Axar Patel
• Kuldeep Yadav
• Mohammed Siraj
• Mohammed Shami
• Jasprit Bumrah

India’s Potential Test Squad

Credit: India Today

The test format is the most trying and difficult format in cricket. This is why you will see teams usually employ more experienced players in their test teams, as the primary game is not about attacking but about patience. However, even test cricket is changing, with teams like England going after bowlers and playing much more aggressively.

India also has such players; the most prominent one which comes to mind is Rishabh Pant. He has showcased his talent in test cricket all the way since 2018. He has played 56 innings and scored 2267 runs at an average of 43.6 and a strike rate of 73.5. He will surely remain India’s keeper in test cricket regardless of the fact that they play one team or multiple teams.

Rishabh Pant’s Stats For Team India In Tests:

While experience is usually preferred in test cricket, it does not mean that youngsters who have shown an affinity for this format must be regarded. One such upcoming talent is Dhruv Jurel, who was recently given a chance to prove himself in this format. Jurel played just four innings but did very well. He scored 190 runs at an average of 63.3 and a strike rate of 53.7. He proved his worth and showed what he could bring to the table, and it will not be surprising to see him become a regular starter on India’s test squad.

Dhruv Jurel’s Stats For Team India In Tests:

Starting XI

• Rohit Sharma
• Yashasvi Jaiswal
• Shubman Gill
• Virat Kohli
• Rishabh Pant (Wk)
• Dhruv Jurel
• Ravindra Jadeja
• Ravichandran Ashwin
• Mohammed Siraj
• Mohammed Shami
• Jasprit Bumrah

Is This The Real Reason Behind Indian Players Retiring?

Kohli, Rohit and Jadeja retire from T20Is after 🇮🇳's long-awaited victory in the World Cup final🏆 #CricketTwitter pic.twitter.com/QG2Wt2uKuv

— Guerilla Cricket #GCFromHome (@guerillacricket) July 1, 2024

Due to the amount of news revolving around Gautam Gambhir taking over as head coach after the T20 World Cup and that he may choose to play different teams across different formats, many consider this to be an additional reason for the retirement of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja from T20 internationals. However, there is no concrete proof behind this, and these are just rumours flying around. I, for one, do not believe there is any truth behind these rumours. Gautam Gambhir has even come out and said that players should look to play in all three formats if they are good enough. He said:

“I am not a big believer in identifying players for specific formats. Professional cricketers have a very small window when they’re playing for their country, and they should aim to play as much as possible. When you’re in good form, go ahead and play all three formats.”

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli said after the tournament that another thing became clear. This was because Virat Kohli had already decided to retire from this format after the 2024 T20 World Cup, and from what Rohit Sharma said, it is quite likely that he would have chosen to do the same irrespective of the result in the final and that Ravindra Jadeja would have followed suit. Gautam Gambhir’s selection as head coach had nothing to do with either of their decisions to retire.

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