IND vs SL: Gautam Gambhir Breaks Silence On Kuldeep Yadav’s 2nd Test Spot Ahead Of Sri Lanka Clash

India head coach Gautam Gambhir has backed Kuldeep Yadav ahead of the second Test against Sri Lanka, saying the spinner should focus on bowling well instead of putting too much pressure on himself to take wickets.

Kuldeep picked up only one wicket in the first Test in Galle, which India won by 165 runs. His limited bowling time has led to questions over whether he will retain his place in the XI for the second Test.

India also have uncapped off-spinning all-rounder Saransh Jain as another option.

Gambhir explains India's bowling plan

Gambhir said India will select the bowling attack based on which combination gives them the best chance of taking 20 wickets.

“We will try and pick the best bowling attack which can get us 20 wickets. You can score 1,000 runs in Test cricket, but there is no guarantee that you are going to win a test match. But if you get 20 wickets, you have all the probability and possibility of winning the Test match.

“For me, I think winning Test matches, you try and pick the best attack that can get you 20 wickets, whether you have got three left-arm spinners in it or an off-spinners or three seamers and we have all our options open. Ultimately, we know how good a bowler Kuldeep is. More importantly, sometimes it is up to the captain as well.

“He feels that if his two other spinners can get him wickets looking at the conditions, what pace he wants a certain spinner to bowl. It is not about guys under-bowling. It is about getting the result. For me, I think that is more important.

“When you play five proper bowlers, someone will eventually go under-bowl and that is what Test cricket is all about. But it is not about someone not delivering and going under-bowl. It is about who he feels, the captain feels or the management feels, can be most threatening in that particular condition,” said Gambhir in the pre-match press conference.

Gambhir's message to Kuldeep

Speaking about his conversations with Kuldeep, Gambhir said the spinner has been asked to concentrate on his bowling rather than becoming desperate for wickets.

“So for me, I think the conversation that I have had with Kuldeep is just try and bowl your good spell rather than looking desperate to take wickets because sometimes, as a wrist spinner, when you are looking and you are desperate to take wickets, I think your control can go away as well.

“But for a very long period of time, we rate Kuldeep very highly and we know how successful and how threatening can he be in every condition given to him. But again, I think the same thing as I said, we are going to try and pick the best attack of what can deliver in these conditions.”

Kuldeep's place in the team remains one of the main selection talking points ahead of the Colombo Test.

Gambhir happy with Galle Test

Gambhir was also pleased with the nature of the pitch in Galle and the way India performed over five days.

“We really enjoyed it. I thought the Test match was a very good Test match wicket. It had something for everyone. It had spin for the spinners. Batters could bat even on day five as well. If you bend your back, there was something for the seamers as well. So I thought it was a proper Test wicket and we expect the same here as well.

“We want to work extremely hard, not only for one or two days, but extremely hard for five days to win a Test match and that is exactly what we did in the last test match. That is why it was very, very pleasing for us that we worked extremely hard. We did the right things right in Test wicket. Guys got in, made those big runs. We had partnerships. We batted first.

“We batted for four, four and a half sessions, put big runs on the board. That is what the key is in these subcontinent conditions. If you bat first, you plan bat big so that you can control the test match from there. Then we had wickets from our seamers and spinners as well. So I'm not going to say that it was a perfect Test match, but that is how we want to see Test wicket going forward as well so that teams have to work extremely hard to win a Test match over the course of five days.”

Why India prefer five specialist bowlers

Gambhir also explained why India want to continue with five proper bowling options, especially on pitches that become easier for batting.

“If it's too flat, then the bowlers will have to work hard and maybe extra hard work because as I said, you will have to take 20 wickets if you want to win the Test match. If you bat first and score 700 runs, then if you don't take 20 wickets, then ultimately it's a draw.

“So if it's flat, then ultimately we have the luxury that we have five proper bowlers. When you have five proper bowlers, then you can better rotate your bowlers. But if you only play with four bowlers, then sometimes it's a lot of hard work. As we saw in the last Test match, that if Kuldeep didn't bowl a lot, despite that we had a fifth bowler who could come and take wickets for you at any stage.

“But if your fifth bowler is a part-timer, then you won't be able to rotate your seamers a lot and you will have to bring your seamers back quickly. You want to bring your seamers back in these conditions when they come and create an impact rather than a defensive option. So we have that luxury. I always say that the team that has five proper bowlers, they always have more chances to win the Test match.”

Gambhir praises Devdutt Padikkal and Manav Suthar

Gambhir also spoke positively about the emergence of young players such as Devdutt Padikkal and Manav Suthar.

He said their performances show the growing depth in India's red-ball setup.

“I think someone getting an opportunity and making the most of it, what better can it be for Indian cricket? We keep talking about the depth and need to have a bigger depth in red ball cricket. We know that how much depth do we have in white ball cricket.

“But the more depth we have in red ball cricket, it is always good for that dressing room as well and we want to have that competition. It's not a bad thing because when you have competition, you want people to keep getting better as well and the prime example was Dev.

“When he got his opportunity, he waited for a long time because Sai was batting at three. He waited and he made the most of it as well and that is what we expect. The same was with Manav as well. Whenever he got the opportunity, he made his debut against Afghanistan. It was a big series for him.

“He had put his hand up, which again is good for Indian cricket because these guys are young and these guys are the guys if they continue to put their head down and keep working hard, will take Indian cricket forward as well. There are other talented guys sitting in the dressing room as well. Sai is going to be part of the dressing room, which is again good. The more depth, the better it is for Indian cricket.”

Young players will get time, says Gambhir

The India coach also stressed that young players should not be judged after just one or two matches.

“Extremely satisfied because when you get those younger players coming in and delivering straight away, but again, there is still a lot of work to be done. You can't judge players by only one or two performances. Yes, there is a lot of talent.

“That's why they are playing for India and they have delivered straight away, which again is very good for Indian cricket as well because we want to see that depth not only in white ball cricket, but in red ball cricket as well. We have seen that they are getting an opportunity at number three and making the most of it.

“One of them coming in and delivering in those two test matches. But again, as I said, judging players by only one or two Test matches is not going to be fair because we want to give them a longer rope. At the same time, we will keep backing them because there will be ups and downs in Test cricket. We know how tough Test cricket is and Test format is and that is again good for Indian cricket because of their depth as well.”

Gambhir backs Jaiswal to keep playing his shots

Gambhir was also asked about Yashasvi Jaiswal's tendency to get out while playing the cut shot.

Rather than asking the opener to stop playing the shot, Gambhir wants him to improve his execution.

“Look, don't curb the shot. Just get better at it. If I start telling players to curb everything and start talking about the dismissals of whatever shots they play, how will they score runs?

“Everyone has got their own shots to score runs. But ultimately, if you are getting out on a particular shot, rather than just curbing it down, just keep getting better at it. That's how I look at cricket and that is how I look at sport as well. I am not someone who is going to tell guys not to play a certain shot.

“For example, if someone gets out pulling, rather than telling him not to pull, I would rather tell him to get better at it. And that's how I see sport and that is how we want to see these guys getting better at everything that they do.”