Ahmedabad, March 9 The Indian T20I team, led by Gautam Gambhir, made a strong statement by becoming the first to defend the World Cup trophy.
Does this mean that India is in its era of dominance in white-ball cricket?
Not quite, according to the straightforward head coach, who dropped subtle hints that the 50-over side, which is the only national team featuring senior batsmen Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, hasn't achieved results that would qualify it as an era of dominance by the country in white-ball cricket.
With three ICC trophies in three successive years (2024 T20 World Cup, 2025 ICC Champions Trophy, and 2026 T20 World Cup), it was inevitable that someone would ask whether India's white-ball dominance was comparable to that of Australia between 1999 and 2007 (when they won three successive ODI World Cups).
Gambhir responded with a pointed remark.
"Look, I won't talk about white-ball cricket, because in white-ball cricket, we've lost two out of the last three series in the one-day format. If it was an era, we wouldn't have lost two series," said Gambhir with a wry smile.
He didn't name specific players, but it was clear that the defeats against Australia (away) and New Zealand (at home) last year were attributed to the Indian team.
While he agreed that the Indian team's record in recent ICC tournaments has been good, he emphasized that "eras" don't matter.
"I don't believe in these eras. You have to turn up every day, whatever match you're playing. When you're playing for your country, you want to win each and every game.
"So, there's no if and but about this – it's not that this is a bilateral series, or an ICC trophy, or the World Cup. So, I can't differentiate between bilateral and ICC – because it's the same. Everything exactly remains the same," he asserted after the 96-run win over New Zealand in the final here on Sunday.
For him, wearing the India jersey carries responsibility, and no one can take that for granted.
"I think, the people in the dressing room are very privileged who get the opportunity to represent their country. There are thousands of people who want to be in my position. There are millions of kids who want to come in the position of Surya (India T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav) and the players in the dressing room," he said.
"So, we can never take anything for granted. And when you wear this jersey, you can never afford to take anything for granted."
