Mumbai, July 22 (HS). Gautam Gambhir, who has taken charge as Team India's head coach, believes he has a huge responsibility to shoulder as he steps into the role that was previously held by Rahul Dravid and Ravi Shastri.
“The most important thing is that they will always support me. My goal is to make the dressing room happy and safe. I am leading a very successful team. I have a huge responsibility and I am excited about it,” Gambhir said in a press conference on Monday.
Gambhir will have to work in a dressing room full of star players which will include Rohit Sharma and star batsman Virat Kohli. Gambhir says that he has a good relationship with Virat Kohli.
He said, “I have a very good relationship with Virat Kohli, we exchange messages – he is world class, batsman, I have told you many times that both of us will work hard for Team India and make 140 crore people proud.”
He said, “Both Virat and Rohit still have a lot of cricket left in them, they are world class, any team can include both of them – there is the Champions Trophy, the Australia series, then if fitness remains good then there will be the 2027 World Cup.”
Suryakumar Yadav was declared the captain of the T20 series on Thursday, giving preference over Hardik. The 33-year-old Suryakumar's first assignment as the captain of the team will be the Sri Lanka series. The three T20 matches will be played on July 27, July 28 and July 30.
Indian team's chief selector Ajit Agarkar said that Pandya is an important player for the Men in Blue and it is difficult to find skills like him in anyone else.
“Hardik has always been an important player for us. Skills like his are hard to find. Fitness has been a challenge for him. Hopefully, his performance is more important than anything else. We want a player who is available on most occasions. Having said all that, Surya has all the qualities required to be a captain,” Agarkar said.
The Indian team will play a three-match T20I followed by a three-match ODI series on the Sri Lanka tour. The three T20 matches will be played on 27, 28 and 30 July, followed by a three-match ODI series, which will start on August 1. The Pallekele International Stadium will host the T20I leg of the series, while the R Premadasa will host the 50-over matches.
