Gautam Gambhir's dressing room leak interrogated in India; senior players accused

Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra opened up about head coach Gautam Gambhir's dressing room talk leak ahead of the fifth Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Aakash Chopra questioned how private discussions in the dressing room, such as Gautam Gambhir's comments, were made public.

Reports suggested that after the fourth Test, Gautam Gambhir criticized the Indian players for their poor shot selection and warned them that such mistakes would not be tolerated in the future. India was on track for a draw at the MCG but collapsed dramatically after Rishabh Pant's dismissal.

Gautam Gambhir's dressing room chats leaked

The Men in Blue lost seven wickets for just 34 runs in the final session. This defeat leaves India trailing 1-2 in the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy series. To retain the trophy and stay in contention for the World Test Championship, India must win the final match in Sydney, starting on January 3.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra expressed concern over the leak of Gautam Gambhir's dressing room talk. Chopra emphasized that the dressing room should be a place where players trust each other, and if such talks start leaking, it is a breach of trust.

"People are saying that Gautam said the shots being played won't work out and that it's enough. My first big question is how the talk that apparently happened in the dressing room came out," he said (2:00)

"You can openly say anything in the dressing room and have complete faith that the talk won't go out. It's a small family where you trust each other. The day the dressing room talk starts coming out, the trust deficit is of a different level," Chopra added.

No One Will Talk on One Platform as It Gets Leaked - Aakash Chopra

In the same video, the cricketer-turned-commentator highlighted the negative impact of leaks on team dynamics. He said that it might lead to a divided and insecure dressing room.

"Then you see groups in the team. Suddenly you will find discussions happening in groups because no one can talk openly. No one will talk on one platform as it gets leaked. Secondly, the dressing room becomes extremely insecure. If the dressing room talk starts coming out, it means it has become the home of insecure players," he said (2:40).

The One Who Leaks Is One of the Seniors - Aakash Chopra

The former India opener said that senior players are responsible for such leaks, as juniors are typically too focused on their thoughts and fear speaking out.

"Thirdly, generally, the one who leaks is one of the seniors. The juniors are incapable of doing that. The juniors are anyway scared and don't say anything to anyone because they are too consumed in their own thoughts. My big red flag is that it's a concern if the dressing room talk is coming out, in case it's true," Chopra observed.

Captain Rohit Sharma has struggled in his last 15 innings, scoring just 164 runs at an average of 10.93. Virat Kohli has managed only 348 runs in the same number of innings, with a single century and fifty. All seven of Kohli's dismissals in the ongoing Test series have come while playing around the off-stump.

Also read: Gautam Gambhir punishes Rohit Sharma; to be dropped from Sydney Test after dressing room leaks