Following India’s unexpected series loss to New Zealand, where visiting spinners with limited first-class experience exploited the home side’s vulnerabilities, questions have arisen about India’s ability to handle spin on their own turf. Head coach Gautam Gambhir, while not fully endorsing the view that India’s skill against spin has deteriorated, acknowledged a noticeable decline in players’ defensive techniques, attributing it to the pervasive influence of T20 cricket.
Gambhir praised New Zealand spinner Mitchell Santner’s performance, noting his impact in the previous match, and said, “Sometimes you’ve got to give it to the opposition as well. Santner was outstanding in the last game.” However, he admitted there is work to be done, adding, “Guys are putting in hard yards in the nets. Ultimately, it’s the results that matter, but I don’t think our skill against spin has actually gone down.”
India has struggled with sudden collapses throughout the series, with notable downfalls in each game—losing clusters of wickets that have stunted their progress. Gambhir emphasized the importance of playing sessions in Test cricket, remarking, “If we can start to learn how to play sessions… and if we play four to four-and-a-half sessions, we’ll have a lot of runs on the board.”
Highlighting the challenges posed by modern-day T20 cricket, Gambhir noted how players are increasingly reliant on aggressive play rather than defensive techniques. “We need to defend better,” he said. “If you’ve got confidence in your defense, a lot of things can be sorted, especially on a turning track.”
He observed that the rise of limited-overs cricket has affected the fundamentals of batting, with batters losing some of the soft-handed, defensive skills that were more common a decade ago. “A complete cricketer adapts to both T20 and Test formats successfully. Growth is not just about hitting big shots but also about the ability to bat sessions on turning tracks,” Gambhir said, stressing the need for solid foundations to enable players to perform across formats.
With one Test remaining in the series, India will be keen to address these concerns and adapt their approach to withstand the unique challenges of Test cricket, especially on spin-friendly pitches.