The series of success that Team India had started in Test cricket 12 years ago has finally stopped. After losing to England on their own soil in November-December 2012, Team India won 18 consecutive Test series. Now in 2024, it again had to lose the series at home. New Zealand has taken a 2-0 lead with a 113-run win in the Pune Test, which means it has captured the series. During both these defeats, some names remained in the dressing room of Team India, one of which is Gautam Gambhir. Gautam had received severe punishment for that defeat 12 years ago. Now the question is, will they give the same punishment to those who had more responsibility this time?
Team India has lost only these two Test series at home in the last 12 years and coincidentally, both came at a time when the need for change was felt. When Team India lost the series 2-1 to the very strong England under the captaincy of MS Dhoni, it was a time when many senior players of the team were at the last stage of their career and their performance had started declining. The team needed new energy and new young players and for that the senior players needed to leave their place.
Many seniors including Gambhir-Sehwag were out
Ultimately this is what happened. Gautam Gambhir was also one of them, who was the opener of the team at that time and the first attack was on Gambhir. Gambhir had failed miserably in that series and due to this he was immediately dropped from the team. After this, Gambhir played only 3-4 Tests between 2014 and 2016. His veteran partner Virender Sehwag also failed but he was selected for the next series and after that he was retired forever.
Star off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was also unable to make any impact and was out of the team for 2 years after the next series. Then after his comeback in 2015, he was thrown out forever. Similarly, veteran fast bowler Zaheer Khan also remained out for a year and then never returned after playing only 4 more tests. Yuvraj Singh also failed against England and that proved to be his last Test series.
Will coach Gambhir be able to take this step?
Gambhir, who suffered the defeat in the last series as a player, got punishment for his performance. Now, with him being the coach, Team India has to see this day after 12 years and once again the situation is similar to 2012, where the performance of the senior players is under question and they are towards the end of their careers. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, who have made Team India win dozens of Tests at home and away in the last decade, proved to be a miserable failure in this series. All four players are above 35 years of age and their energy is not the same as before. In such a situation, will Gambhir take the same action as was taken against him 12 years ago?
Fate changed due to change
Well, coincidence is not just that. In fact, about a year before the 2012 defeat, Team India had bid farewell to its number 3 Rahul Dravid and number 5 VVS Laxman. After this, England defeated Team India and then a period of change began, due to which Team India remained dominant for 12 years. The current Team India also bid farewell to its number-3 batsman Cheteshwar Pujara and number-5 batsman Ajinkya Rahane in the last one year. Although both of them did not retire like Dravid-Laxman, but their comeback also does not seem to be happening. So will Team India be able to regain its previous dominance after going through a major change?
