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The India National Cricket Team will be returning to the traditional format of cricket as they host Afghanistan for a one-off Test outside the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-2027 cycle. However, this is a crucial clash for head coach Gautam Gambhir and Shubman Gill to try and test their best side ahead of their series against Sri Lanka.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir is currently doing a press conference ahead of the match day, where he has shared his valuable insights on the upcoming series and also India’s possibilities of qualifying for the WTC final. As of now, the Men in Blue have lost two back-to-back home series against New Zealand and South Africa.
We believe that we can win- Gautam Gambhir
Ahead of the game, Gautam Gambhir said in the press conference: “We believe that we can win the WTC. There is talent and hunger in this team.” However, since Gambhir joined the side, the Men in Blue have lost two home series and one away series against Australia. But their performance at home has been one of the most discussed points.
The Men in Blue side currently sits at the 6th position in the WTC points table with 48.15% of points. They are reportedly scheduled to tour Sri Lanka for a two-match Test series in August 2026, marking their first red-ball assignment in the country in nearly a decade. Ahead of that, they do not have any kind of Test matches, so the Men in Blue will be looking at this game seriously.
Gautam Gambhir's performance as India's head coach
Gautam Gambhir, since joining as the head coach, has won the Asia Cup, ICC Champions Trophy, and the T20 World Cup 2026. Under him, the Men in Blue side has performed dominantly in the white-ball format, especially in the shorter format; they have not lost a T20I series under him. But again, in the Test format, except for the sensational England tour, India have failed to perform well.
Apart from the WTC comments, the ODI World Cup winner also provided a massive update on India’s No.3 position as he confirmed that Sai Sudharsan will be the batter to play in that position ahead of Devdutt Padikkal. The latter, however, had a better form in first-class cricket, but Gauti made it clear that the Tamil Nadu batter will be given a long run.
India plans long for upcoming series
In terms of spin choices, Gambhir stated that Manav Suthar and Harsh Dubey were comparable yet differed in their release points. He added that the match will allow India to select their fourth spinner, as the team intends to carry four spinners on the Sri Lanka tour in August.
He also stated that India will need to prepare differently for the New Zealand tour, which might involve some ODI players who also play Tests. Gambhir stated that the team recognised the value of better preparation for Test cricket. The India head coach have a long term planning and will be looking to execute it properly.
