'Struggling in defending': Gautam Gambhir claims T20 Cricket is eroding India's Test batting quality

India head coach Gautam Gambhir feels that the rise in T20 cricket has affected the batters' ability to defend. Gambhir admitted to the fact that batters will continue to struggle to defend in the future with more no. of T20 matches.

Recently, India are trailing 0-2 in a three-match Test series against New Zealand with one more game to go. This is India's first Test series defeat in 12 years at home and a long streak of 18 consecutive Test series wins at home has been broken.

Indian batters have particularly struggled in both the Tests of the series. The batters have tried to play aggressively with not much confidence shown in the defense. Such kind of methods can be extremely risky and it has been proved right after India lost wickets in clusters.

Also read: "What's wrong in being in this position?": Gautam Gambhir's shocking take on Test series loss to NZ

Gautam Gambhir's huge claim on Test batting in the future

While speaking to the reporters in Mumbai ahead of the third Test, Gautam Gambhir issued a warning for Test match batting in the future. Gambhir claimed that Test match batting will keep getting affected with more no. of T20 matches.

“The more the T20 cricket is played (around the world), the more the people will struggle in defending,” Gambhir reckoned.

He further mentioned the important of defence in the success of a batter. Gambhir added that the team management is working on the defense of a few players, and he expects to see some good results in the future.

“But the most successful players irrespective of the formats always had strong defence. We need to keep telling people the importance of defence and we are working hard on it and we will see results in future,” the former India opener added.

India's aggressive batting approach

Instead of trusting their defense and grinding it out, the Indian batters have tried to play their shots to release the pressure. Unfortunately, they have fallen into their own trap, resulting in giving wickets to the New Zealand bowlers.

India's captain Rohit Sharma too has spoken about showing intent while youngsters like Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Rishabh Pant have tried to bat in an attacking mode. They have had success on numerous occasions but have failed on some occasions as well.

Gautam Gambhir on a tough start to his coaching career

When asked about the difficult start to his coaching career, Gambhir insisted on continuing to work hard and win every possible game.

“I never expected a very easy run for me. I know that we lost in Sri Lanka and against NZ and it is not a good place to be. All we can do is keep working hard and we will try winning every game that we play to represent the country,” he stated.

Under Gautam Gambhir as the head coach, India lost an ODI series to Sri Lanka for the first time in 27 years in July 2024. Recently, the Men in Blue suffered a shocking Test series defeat to New Zealand which was their first Test series loss at home in 12 years.

The third and final Test of the series will be played in Mumbai and India will be aiming to finish the series on a high. The match will be important for both teams given the important World Test Championship (WTC) points at stake.