The ex-Pakistan star in question here is Basit Ali, who believes that the Indian skipper and head coach haven’t been on the same page since the latter took over the reins back in July 2024
Team India’s disappointing performance in the ongoing Brisbane Test sparked speculation from former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali of a divide in the Indian dressing room. According to the ex-Pakistan star, skipper Rohit Sharma and head coach Gautam Gambhir ‘not being on the same page’.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Basit speculated that the Indian captain and head coach have not been on the same page since Gambhir took over the reins from Rahul Dravid in July earlier this year.
“Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir are not on the same page, be it the one-day tournament in Sri Lanka; Bangladesh, which was a weak series; or the New Zealand series after that,” Basit said.
“In the second and third (Tests), they (Rohit and Gambhir) are not on the same page, like Rahul Dravid was. He and Rohit were not on the same page,” Basit added.
The former Pakistan cricketer explained his statement by pointing out the bowling combinations that India used during the first 3 matches of the series. According to Basit, with Australia using 3 left-handed batters, India could have opted for either Washington Sundar or Ravichandran Ashwin, who were respectively picked for the first two matches, as opposed to Ravindra Jadeja, who was given a chance in the Brisbane Test.
“I can explain it very easily. In all three Tests matches, a different spinner played. In two Test matches, they batted after winning the toss, but here they chose to bowl. There are three left-handers in the Australian batting….So why not (Washington) Sundar and why not (Ravichandran) Ashwin? Anybody who understands cricket will definitely talk about it,” Basit said.
Basit also questioned the Men in Blue’s decision to bowl first despite their attack getting mainly carried by Jasprit Bumrah.
“Was the decision to bowl first right? I think it was not. The Indian team is only dependent on Bumrah. The rest of the bowlers are not performing like they should. If I say it’s Bumrah vs Australia, that will be right. Similarly, it’s Travis Head vs India…Neither Rohit, nor (bowling coach) Morne Morkel and (chief coach) Gautam Gambhir are able to solve this problem,” Basit said.
“India don’t have a left-arm fast bowler in their squad. That’s a weak link. We have seen Mir Hamza or Shaheen Shah Afridi accounting for Head because that’s a different angle. That’s why, if you see, Bumrah bowls round the wicket to Head,” Basit added.
