Last Update on: August 24th, 2023 at 03:52 pm
Former India left-handed batsman Gautam Gambhir opened up on his extraordinary 75-run knock against Pakistan in the 2007 World T20 final and the 97-run knock in the 2011 World Cup final against Sri Lanka and said that he did not feel pressure during the finals.
While speaking to Revsportz, Gautam Gambhir said that he did not feel pressure since he got runs behind him and was doing something that loved. Gambhir added that when the Men in Blue lost early wickets, he did not have any negative thoughts.
“Playing the World Cup final was not pressure. I had runs behind me, I was doing something I liked doing, and I was confident of doing well. In fact, even when we lost two wickets, I did not have a single negative thought.
“All I was focused on was playing the next ball. That’s what it is about. Just play the next ball and don’t look too far ahead. If you do, that’s when you build pressure on yourself. If you just play the next ball, you know you are in control. And that’s what I did in the 2011 final. Honestly, I did not feel pressure and nor did I have negative thoughts when we were two down,” Gautam Gambhir said.
I was insecure and scared: Gautam Gambhir
Gautam Gambhir revealed that he only felt the pressure during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2014 season when he scored three ducks in a row for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and accepted that he was insecure and scared at that time and things changed only when he started to take things head-on.
“In fact, the only time I felt pressure was in 2014 when I got three consecutive ducks for KKR [Kolkata Knight Riders] in Dubai as captain. That’s when I felt the pressure. I then got one in the fourth inning and was ashamed of my efforts. That was pressure. You feel the pressure when things don’t go well for you.”
“Not when things are right, and you are on a roll. In the fourth match, I asked Manish Pandey to open the innings and batted at No. 3 myself. Manish was scoring, and I did this because I was scared. I have no hesitation in accepting I was insecure and scared. However, Manish was out without scoring and I got out for 1.”
“I told Manish I would never again do this, and decided to take things head-on. I was feeling the pressure. I was nervous. But then that’s what mental strength and courage is all about. You need to face up to the toughest challenges. In our next game, I opened the batting and smashed the first ball from Kane Richardson for four. Perhaps the most important four of my IPL career. That’s when things changed again,” Gautam Gambhir added.
In the upcoming ICC ODI World Cup, Rohit Sharma-led India will take on Babar Azam’s Pakistan on October 14th at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.