'High Risk, High Reward or Failure': Gautam Gambhir Backs Indian Batters to 'Entertain the People Even in Test Cricket'

Ahead of their three-match Test series against New Zealand starting on Wednesday, India head coach Gautam Gambhir stated that the team think-tank will continue to back their batters in playing high-risk cricket in the longer format.

In its last Test match, which was played against Bangladesh in a rain-hit Green Park Stadium at Kanpur, India came out all guns blazing in their first innings by setting new records for the fastest 50, 100, 150, 200 and 250 scores in the longer format, before declaring at 285/9.

The Rohit Sharma-led side then chased down 95 in 17.2 to complete a blazing win and seal the series 2-0. “We want people to be aggressive, go out there and play the natural game. Why do we need to hold on people? If they can play the natural game, get 400 or 500 runs in a day, why not?”

“I’ve always maintained T20 cricket has to be played that way, and we will play that way. High risk, high reward, high risk, high failure, and we will continue to play that way. There will be days when we’ll get bundled out for 100, but we’ll take it up, continue to back our players to go out there and play high risk cricket.”

“That’s how we want to play, entertain the people of this country, and even in Test cricket, we want to keep making the game go forward, and try to get the results in whatever situation we are in,” said Gambhir in a pre-series press conference.

However, Gambhir quickly dispelled the notion of playing the game with blinkers, saying “adaptability” will also remain important for his side.

“I had said in Chennai that we want to be a team that can make 400 runs in a day and bat for two days to draw. That’s called growth.

“That’s called adaptability and that’s called Test cricket. If you play the same way, then it’s not growth,” he explained.

Gambhir was confident in his wards’ ability to tame any situation without sacrificing the team’s motto of pushing the limits.

“We have a lot of individuals in the dressing room who can bat for two days. So, ultimately, the first motive is to win the match. If we’re in a situation where we have to play for a draw, then that’s the second or the third option.

“We don’t want to play any other type of cricket. We want people to go out there and play the natural game,” he detailed.

(With inputs from Agencies)