Gautam Gambhir not happy with Rohit Sharma’s comments about Rahul Dravid

Former Indian batter Gautam Gambhir opened up on Rohit Sharma’s comments about head coach Rahul Dravid ahead of the ICC World Cup 2023 final against Australia.

Gambhir, who scored 97 runs in the 2011 World Cup final against Sri Lanka, praised Dravid’s coaching stint with the Men in Blues for the way India played throughout the tournament.

"Dravid's contract as head coach should be automatically renewed. The kind of cricket that India played throughout the World Cup, if you are going to judge a coach by just one match then it is a wrong precedent," he said.

But Gambhir didn’t approve of Sharma’s comments about winning the tournament for Dravid saying that it shouldn't be won for an individual but the country, citing the example of the 2011 World Cup where many Indian cricketers openly said that they wanted to win the mega event for Sachin Tendulkar.

"Every player, every coach wants to win the World Cup. If he wants a renewal then definitely, he should be given that chance. What better than continuity? I would never understand one thing. It happened during our time in 2011 too. When you say that you want to win the World Cup for an individual, doesn't matter who that is... this statement is not right.

“You are trying to win the World Cup for the entire country. And if you want to say such a thing, don't say it in the media. Keep it within yourself.

“The truth is, it is more important to win a World Cup for the nation. I was asked the same in 2011 when everyone said we were trying to win the World Cup for one individual, I said no I want to win the Cup for my country. I picked up the bat for my country. So, Rohit probably shouldn't have said this,” Gambhir added.

Sharma, ahead of the final against Australia which the home side lost in a one-sided manner by six wickets, stated that the team wanted to win the trophy for Dravid.

"The way he stood by the players in difficult times, especially during the T20 World Cup, where we had a good run up until that semifinal, where we lost. How he reacted to certain situations and informed the players was helpful. He wants to be part of this big occasion, and it's for us to do it for him," the Indian captain had said.