IND vs AUS: Team India disintegrates, Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma owe apology to the nation

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On December 30, just after India's massive defeat at the MCG in the fourth Test of the BGT Series, I wrote a hard-hitting piece on the entire coaching staff. There was no targeting Gautam Gambhir or his motley mix comprising Abhishek Nayar, Morne Morkel and T Dilip.

It was plain-speak how they all failed. A few laughed at my story as well, asking if I had become privy to inside information. No, I have no 'contacts' in cricket, like many claims, just strong news sense.

And this morning (January 1, 2025), when the Indian Express newspaper put out a massive scoop on how the Indian dressing room is not united, I could smile. It is clear, that something is amiss.

If reporters who scripted the piece are being hauled over the coals, it is not because of sensationalism but reporting facts. Surely, no reporter(s) will put his career on the block by doing such a juicy story. By evening, everyone had to follow up the story. Having worked with the same newspaper for 10 years in a different era, I can assure you, they will not publish bilge.

Back to my story on Gambhir, he is a pilot incapable of handling the stress inside the cockpit when there is turbulence. That there has been a crash-landing at the MCG and the wreckage is being salvaged has come out in the open. The story is not if skipper Rohit Sharma leaked the story or if Virat Kohli is now aspiring to become captain again. The narrative is that Gambhir failed. If he had to tell the team a few harsh things, what was he doing all this while? Is he a head coach who has no skills in mentoring?

To be sure, at this level, Gambhir cannot teach Kohli what to do with that red cherry outside the off-stump. Kohli has fallen to that several times, so the entire coaching staff has failed. Rohit has flopped. No runs from his bat, 'division' in the dressing room and much more. And now a wire service says Gambhir was not the unanimous choice as coach.

How fragile the Indian team is, we can now make out. And it is now clear that seven wickets falling like nine pins on Day 5 in one session was a disaster at the MCG. If Gambhir spoke in the dressing room and all kinds of stories and now doing the rounds, it proves one thing. Gambhir does not trust his players and there is no mutual respect.

Facts first, Gambhir came on a high. He has hit the nadir now. He has been unable to fire up the boys and the atmosphere before the Sydney Test is ugly. Now we know, how and why R Ashwin walked into retirement without being nudged after the third Test. If you watch all the posts from Ashwin on X, he is having a good laugh.

To put it aptly, this Team India has become laughing stock. The captain failed, and if Virat Kohli tried to 'lead' the side as well, he was doing a good job. He was proactive, firing up Mohammed Siraj and setting the field. Some journalists are also described as "Viratians" and "Rohitians." I have no such allegiance. Both are legends, and it is a shame the youngsters in the side (Team India) would be watching all this.

Now see the Aussie media, they have also gone for the jugular, just like Pat Cummins. What has happened in the dressing room will have many versions now. Sadly, some people have put themselves ahead of the team. This is not the first time a dressing room leak has hit Team India. It shows everyone in poor light. And the man we thought would be the messiah is now behaving like a wimp - Gautam Gambhir.

He was always seen as a loner. For having failed to hold the flock together, he has not done his job as chief coach. Imagine, the chairman of the selection committee, Ajit Agarakar is also there in Australia like a few more tourists -- Sarfaraz Khan and Prasidh Krishna.

The BCCI is rudderless, president Roger Binny is silent. The acting secretary is not acting on all this. To use American slang, "shit has hit the ceiling fan." Who is going to clean it? Boy, it stinks.

- The writer is a seasoned journalist with over three decades of experience in sports reporting. The views expressed in this piece are personal and reflect the writer's independent analysis and professional insights