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According to Gambhir, the Indian team is looking to score 250-260 runs in every T20I match, and he doesn’t mind getting out for a low score in some matches while attempting to achieve the task.
Gautam Gambhir said the team is ready to push the barriers in T20 Internationals with the adoption of a fresh high-risk, high-reward approach. (Picture Credit: PTI)
Gautam Gambhir has won 10 out of 11 T20Is since taking charge of the Indian men’s cricket team as head coach in July 2024. Under his guidance, the new-look Indian team has opted for an aggressive approach with the bat from the first ball itself, and as a result, in the last two series, India has posted totals of 297 and 247 runs. Gambhir, who top-scored for India in the final of the 2007 T20 World Cup against Pakistan, wants his team to continue playing ‘high-risk, high-reward’ cricket in the shortest format and target “to get 250-260 regularly.”
“That’s the kind of T20 cricket we want to play. We don’t want to fear losing a game of cricket. We want to play high-risk, high-reward cricket. And these guys have adopted that ideology really well,” Gambhir said on Star Sports after India secured a big win by 150 runs over England on Sunday at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Gambhir said the Indian team is looking to score 250-260 runs in every game, and he doesn’t mind getting out for a low score in some matches while attempting to achieve the task.
“We want to try and get to 250-260 regularly. And in trying to do that, there’ll be games where we’ll get bundled out for 120-130. And that is what T20 cricket is all about.”
“Unless and until you don’t play that high-risk cricket, you won’t get those big rewards as well. Most importantly, I think we’re on the right track. Come those big tournaments, we want to continue playing this way, and we don’t want to fear losing anything,” he added.
“I think the ideology of this T20 team is based on selflessness and fearlessness, and I think in the last six months, these guys have done it day in, day out.”
Using Abhishek Sharma’s 135-run knock in the fifth T20I as an example, Gambhir said the team management wants to keep backing players like the 24-year-old left-handed batter.
“We want to keep backing players like Abhishek Sharma. We have to be patient with these boys. I haven’t seen a better T20 hundred against bowlers who are bowling at 140-150 kph consistently,” he added.
Gambhir also praised 33-year-old spinner Varun Chakaravarthy for reinventing himself and coming back stronger to international cricket.
“I think his transformation from IPL to international T20 cricket has been phenomenal. This series was probably the benchmark as well because England is a high-quality side.
“They’ve got some really quality cricketers, and the kind of surfaces we’ve played on—I think they were fantastic batting wickets—and the way he’s bowled those tough overs has been phenomenal,” said Gambhir.
Chakravarthy accounted for the dismissal of 14 English batters in five matches and broke his own record of taking most wickets for India in a bilateral T20I series.
