Gautam Gambhir SLAPS Saqlain Mushtaq over pitch-tampering allegations against India
Published - 11 Mar 2026, 12:56 PM | Updated - 11 Mar 2026, 01:02 PM
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Gautam Gambhir simply does not entertain the claims that make stories about the pitches. Despite India’s milestone achievement in the recently concluded T20 World Cup 2026, a few cricket fans and experts on social media platforms claimed that the pitches were ‘tailored’ only to favor the Indian national cricket team.
The head coach of Team India dismissed the ‘tailored pitch’ theory by saying the Indian cricket team is too good to even be thinking about something like that. He credited the cricketers for scoring runs in various grounds, even under overseas conditions.
Gautam Gambhir straightaway dismissed the 'tailored pitch' theory
During the tournament, former Pakistan cricketer Saqlain Mushtaq said that the pitches used for India matches were prepared to offer the Indian cricket team batters some extra advantage over the opposing team's bowlers.
Gambhir claimed that some people come up with fabricated stories to attract views and TRP, which are not necessary to take on a serious note, as the team has already proved its credibility on different grounds across the globe.
“I don’t agree to that. Why would you tailor something? And honestly, India is too good a team to be even thinking about something like that. In the T20 format, whether you look at Australia or South Africa, we made 200 runs. If we make 200 runs in India, then the wickets get tailored. So I think some people want to create a controversy. Statements given for views and TRPs should not be acceptable”, Gautam Gambhir said in an interview with ANI.
Gautam Gambhir said about the India vs Pakistan match in Sri Lanka
For example, Gautam Gambhir mentioned the India vs Pakistan T20 World Cup 2026 match, which was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The pitches in the island nations are famously known for their spin-friendly nature. Even during the 2026 T20 World Cup, teams struggled a lot on those tracks to score runs. India scored 175 runs, a respectable total, to defeat Pakistan by 61 runs.
“We even played a match in Colombo against Pakistan, where we made around 180, and the rest of the teams were making 140. We defeated Pakistan by a huge margin, and no one questioned the pitch there”, the experienced coach added.
He reminded that it was the International Cricket Council (ICC) that monitored the pitches during the multinational tournaments, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has nothing to do with the character of a pitch.
“Because sometimes it is important to give players a lot of credit as well. It’s not like we made such big scores only in Indian conditions. In ICC tournaments, they control the wickets. It’s not the BCCI that controls them,” the former international opener said.
Team India's coach explained the nature of T20 cricket
He also claimed that fans watch T20 matches to see high-scoring contests. The format is tilted towards the batters, and the fans wish to see the batting side scoring a massive total; that’s the nature of Twenty20 cricket.
“No one wants to come and watch a 120-run T20 game. Everyone wants to watch high-scoring matches. This is a worldwide phenomenon — in Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, and England as well,” he expressed.
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India National Cricket Team Pakistan National Cricket Team Gautam Gambhir Saqlain Mushtaq ICC T20 World Cup India vs PakistanAbout the Author
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