Hilarious Gautam Gambhir memes leave fans in split as India lose ODI series vs Sri Lanka after 27 years

Add as a preferred source on Google

Gautam Gambhir was massively trolled after India lost their first ODI series against Sri Lanka in 27 years on Wednesday, August 7. Chasing a 249-run target, India were bundled out for 138 as Sri Lanka won the third and final ODI by 110 runs.

Notably, this was Gautam Gambhir's first ODI series as the head coach of senior India men's Indian cricket team. He started his stint with the preceding three-match series against Sri Lanka which India won 3-0.

Image Courtesy: ICC

However, things drastically changed in the ODI series. India were bundled out for 230 as the the first ODI ended in a tie, while in the second match, the hosts were all out for 208 while chasing 241.

Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill forged good opening partnerships in both the matches. The partnership between the duo was 75 and 97 in the first and second match, respectively.

India were expected to win the third and final ODI to level the series 1-1, but they could score only 138 amid another batting collapse. India lost 27 wickets out of their 30 wickets to spin bowling in the series. Sri Lanka spinners picked nine wickets in each of the three matches.

India losing against Sri Lanka under the watch of Gautam Gambhir and in the presence of a star-studded batting unit including the likes of Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul - came across as a shock to many.

The same Indian team looked unbeaten in the World Cup 2023, and bigger things were expected after the arrival of Gambhir, who helped Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) end their 10-year title drought in the IPL 2024. Gambhir was equally successful in his stint as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) mentor.

Having also won two World Cup titles, and two IPL trophies as the captain of KKR in the past, Gambhir was revealed as the successor of Rahul Dravid amid huge media coverage. BCCI also came out with multiple videos to welcome Gambhir as the new head coach of the Indian cricket team.

His first press conference after taking the role was also a hit. The former opener oozed confidence, but the first setback has hit him sooner than expected. No one believed Sri Lanka could beat India in a match, leaving apart winning the series. The shocking defeat led to a hilarious meme fest. Have a look.