Gautam Gambhir defended over India’s Test disaster as 2011 World Cup winner exposes BCCI's system failure

Former Indian fast bowler Munaf Patel refused to blame the head coach Gautam Gambhir for the Test team’s embarrassing struggles both at home and away. Ever since Gautam Gambhir took over as India’s head coach, they have won only one Test series against the West Indies at home.

Alarming Test record under Gautam Gambhir

The team has won only 7 matches of their 19 Test outings under Gambhir, with two games drawing. And this drop-in form is no longer something that can be ignored. Not very long ago, India was known as one of the strongest Test teams in the world, both at home and overseas.

But now, the same team is finding it hard to win matches, even on familiar home pitches. The biggest setback came in late 2024, when India suffered a humiliating 3–0 Test series loss at home against New Zealand. And then in 2025, South Africa defeated India 2–0 in another home series.

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These results were shocking, especially for a team that had reached two World Test Championship finals in recent years. As losses piled up, all eyes turned towards Gambhir. With many senior players retired, including Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, the team is in a rebuilding phase. Yet, Gambhir became the main target and was blamed for India’s struggles in Test cricket.

Munaf Patel refuses to blame Gambhir

However, Munaf Patel defended the coach on the YouTube podcast Breaking Sports with Vivek Sethia, “Gautam Gambhir’s thinking is very different. His cricketing thought process is unlike anyone else’s. He has performed well when playing cricket and has won trophies as captain.”

Surprisingly, the 2011 World Cup winner has blamed the BCCI for the Test team’s struggles, questioning the process to prepare players for home conditions. He also felt the experience is another big issue, saying expecting instant success from such a group is unfair.

Patel further explained, “The players of the current Indian Test team don’t even have 100 tests between them, which is the team that played in England. Why we are losing at home is because our batters don’t know how to play spin. And the BCCI is at fault for it.”

BCCI’s role in India’s spin struggles as home dominance completely shattered

He pointed out that the Indian players, in the past, grew up playing on turning pitches in domestic cricket. That helped them develop strong footwork and patience. But things have now changed. The former bowler noted that the BCCI has stopped offering “turning pitches” in domestic cricket and made it mandatory that at “least 6 mm of grass be on pitches”.

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As a result, batters are not learning how to play spin properly, because there is no turn, and this weakness shows up in Test matches badly. In the past, India dominated Test cricket at home because pitches were designed to suit their strengths. Now, with changing pitch rules and preparation methods, India has lost that advantage, as quoted by Patel.

System failure, not a coaching problem

The former pacer further mentioned that Gambhir can only guide and plan, but he cannot bat or bowl on the field. He added, “Everyone’s blaming Gautam Gambhir. He's being unfairly targeted. He is not batting out there. The ones who are aren’t prepared enough.”

Patel signed off by saying, “These are new players, a new era. You are tampering with the system and blaming Gautam Gambhir for it. It’s not fair. The reason we won the Champions Trophy and ODIs/T20Is is that the wickets are the same. We’re losing in tests because the pitches there are different. Why are you targeting one person? He is a good coach. He’s won you an ICC title and drawn the Test series in England.”