Head Coach Gautam Gambhir talks about team combination for the first Test in Perth against Australia on November 22

Head coach Gautam Gambhir during a pre-departure press conference before leaving for Australia tour, in Mumbai, on November 11, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Head coach Gautam Gambhir on Monday (November 11, 2024) said Jasprit Bumrah, as designated vice-captain, will lead India in the opening Test against Australia in Perth if regular skipper Rohit Sharma is unavailable for the game due to personal reasons.

The straight-talking former opener also indicated that KL Rahul could be asked to open the innings in place of Rohit.

The second batch of the Indian players is leaving for Perth, but Rohit has stayed back. Uncertainty remains if Rohit will compete in the series-opener.

“At the moment, there is no confirmation. We will let you know exactly what the situation will be. Hopefully, he is going to be available, but everything you want to know, you will get to know before the start of the series,” Gambhir said.

“Bumrah is the vice-captain, so obviously If Rohit is not available, he is going to lead in Perth,” the coach added.

Rahul likely to open

Rohit’s possible absence also leaves a spot vacant at the top of the batting order and Gambhir said one among the uncapped Abhimanyu Easwaran and KL Rahul, who both played in the unofficial Tests against Australia A for India A, will be picked.

“Obviously, there is Easwaran, there is KL there. We will take a call closer to the first Test match if Rohit is not available.

“There are options. There are quite a lot of options in this spot. Once it gets closer to the first Test match, we will try and play the best playing XI who is going to do the job for us,” he added.

However he gave enough indications that Rahul’s experience might prevail over rookie Easwaran’s current form.

“There are times when you go with the experienced players as well and that is the quality of the man. He (Rahul) can actually bat at the top of the order, he can bat at number 3 and at number 6 as well,” said the former southpaw.

“So you need quite a lot of talent to be doing these kind of jobs as well and he has kept wickets in One-day format as well. So imagine how many countries have players like KL who can actually open the batting and can bat at number 6 as well? “So I feel that if needed be, I think he (Rahul) can do the job for us, especially if Rohit is not available for the first Test match,” Gambhir said.

Team moving forward, coach hints on Shardul non-selection

The coach backed uncapped all-rounder Nitish Reddy, who has a batting average of 21 in first-class cricket, and was picked ahead of veteran pace bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur.

“It is also about moving forward and I feel that this is the best set of players that we have selected to do the job for the country,” Gambhir said. indicating that doors are closed on Shardul for the time being.

Shardul was one of India’s heroes at the Gabba with handful of wickets and a half-century. He has been seamer all-rounder in SENA countries.

“We have picked the best squad who can do the job for us. Nitish Reddy, we all know that how incredibly talented he is and if given an option, he will deliver for us,” Gambhir said.

Why Harshit Rana wasn’t sent for A tour?

Rana was not sent with the India A squad for the unofficial ‘Tests’ in Australia to be ready for the BGT series but Gambhir said the management did not want to add to his workload by getting him to play First-Class games.

“He had played a first-class game against Assam and he did reasonably well (took five-for and scored half-century). We all thought that he has had enough bowling under his belt rather than just sending and playing him another first-class game,” Gambhir said.

“For us, it is important for a fast bowler to be fresh as well. It is going to be a long tour, it is going to be a five-Test match series. The bowling coach, the physios and the trainers thought that he has had enough under his belt and that was one of the reasons,” he added.

While there is no Mohammed Shami and tremendous pressure on Jasprit Bumrah to carry the pace bowling load, Gambhir feels that the attack is potent even with three inexperienced speedsters in Rana, Prasidh Krishna and Akash Deep.

“We have got quality. We have got tall guys who can hit the deck like Prasidh and Harshit. All five guys have different skill sets. That makes our fast bowling attack very very potent.”

10 days of training good enough

Gambhir, who will be travelling with the second batch of Indian squad on Monday (November 11, 2024), said adjusting to conditions in Australia over the next 10 days will be vital for the team.

“We have got a lot of experienced players who have been to Australia a lot of times. Their experience will come in handy for the young players as well. These 10 days are going to be very crucial but come 22nd morning, we should be absolutely ready to fire from ball one,” he said.