What Gautam Gambhir’s 46 all out team can learn from Ravi Shastri’s 36 all out BGT comeback?

Back in 2020, it was his booming voice of positivity and the stubborn refusal to brood about defeat that turned the forgettable Adelaide annihilation into the opening chapter of a memorable Cinderella story for ages. Lessons learnt from 36 all out can be passed to the 46 all out sufferers.

If not, the present Indian management needs to quickly find their own method to inspire a team that has looked disjointed in the three -Test series against New Zealand. And since Rohit Sharma is likely to miss the opening Test at Perth, the onus will be on Gambhir to do a Shastri. He has options. He can be himself or try being Shastri. Either way it isn’t going to be easy. Very early in his stint, the new coach has a task at hand.

India are chasing their third straight Test series victory in Australia. (PHOTO: AP)

Those in the know say that the BCCI inquest in India’s worst-ever showing threw up worrying findings. The cohesiveness and bouncebackability that was witnessed in India’s series win against England at the start of the year was missing against New Zealand.

Disregard the unconfirmed rumours about the seniors players not traveling with the team or rushing home on their whims, but there is enough in the scoreboards of the three Tests to show that had the Indian team passed through a “mettle-detector” there wouldn’t have been a blip.

That was not the case when Rohit’s boys took on the Bazballers from England. Like against New Zealand, they had lost the first Test at Hyderabad but they came back roaring like cornered tigers. The second Test would start with opener Yashaswi Jaiswal hitting a double hundred and when bowling Jasprit Bumrah would take 6 wickets.

Others too would step up in subsequent Tests. The bit part players would put their hands up. 3rd Test: Siraj takes four wickets. 4th Test: Dhruv Jurel compiles 90. 5th Test: Kuldeep Yadav scalps 5 wickets.

India’s Dhruv Jurel in action. (Photo: REUTERS)

Those stories of resilience were missing in the 3-0 whitewash against Kiwis. 46 all out didn’t seem to inspire the team to dig the trenches and launch endless do-or-die sorties like was in the case post 36 all out. Ravichandran Ashwin and Hanuma Vihari partnership were on painkillers but they faced 259 deliveries adding an unbeaten 62 runs over more than 42 overs at Sydney. At Gabba, Cheteshwar Pujara took endless blows on his body to set the stage for Rishabh Pant to be a miracle man.

In his fly-on-the-wall book on India’s greatest ever escape to victory, The Miracle Makers, Bharat Sundaresan talks about the days after the Adelaide disaster. Shastri’s short and simple message to the team was in the language of the young. “Shit happens” – was the long and short of his talk to the boys. He wanted the team to move-on. No one was asked to talk or even think about the second innings collapse but rather focus on the rest of the game where India was competitive.

Shastri had actually called for a team dinner. He didn’t want the boys to sit and brood over the loss. There were party games and singing sessions planned. Sundaresan quotes the team’s bowling coach and Shastri’s buddy from his playing days, Bharath Arun to paint a very unlikely picture of a defeat that wasn’t really licking its wounds. “It ended up being a great evening. All the team members were there until late. It was a fun night. If anyone from outside had seen the team that night, people would have been saying, “Are they celebrating or mourning the 36?”’ Arun would say.

Rishabh Pant hits the ball for six runs during play on the final day of the fourth cricket Test between India and Australia at the Gabba, Brisbane, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Tertius Pickard)

Gambhir has a chance to script his own comeback tale. Though, men of contrasting character, Gambhir and Shastri have a lot in common. They got groomed at Indian cricket’s two big traditional centres – Delhi and Mumbai. From an early age they have brushed shoulders with the stalwarts of the game. They are aware of the country’s cricket legacy and also have a chip on their shoulder, a virtue if you are coach in-charge of stars.

In their playing days, they were true team players. Shastri batted at every position, he moulded himself in any role that the team wanted him to play. Gambhir famously got out hitting a big shot while in his 90s in the World Cup final. They had a big match temperament but never shied away from a fight. They were leaders of men but they played in an era of greats.

Gautam had other credentials to succeed as a coach. As KKR coach and captain, he showed he could get the best out of a diverse dressing room. International stars vouch for his tactics too.

Gambhir and Shastri also had a famous disagreement. It was about a statement Shastri made when he was coach of the Indian team. “If you look at the last three years, we have won nine matches overseas and three-Test series … I can’t see any other Indian team in the last 15-20 years that has had the same run in such a short time, and you have had some great players playing in those series.”

Gambhir found the statement funny. He said Shastri “either doesn’t know the records or hasn’t watched series in the past”. He even made it personal. “What he won was the ODI World Series. There was nothing else that he had won. I don’t remember if he has won anything outside India ever,” he would say.

Maybe, now the pragmatic Gambhir will understand the hyperbolic Shastri better. Even after the Adelaide loss, Shastri had lifted the morale of the team facing a confidence crisis. He famously asked everybody to wear ‘36 as a badge’. Gambhir needs to quickly tear a bunch of pages from Shastri’s coaching manual. It will help him understand that when the team hits rock bottom you need to praise them to the skies.

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