‘I don’t blame anyone’: Gautam Gambhir’s strong words after India fail to defend 249 vs West Indies

West Indies chased down the target of 250 in just 18.3 overs to register their most successful T20I chase against India (Image credit: Agencies) India head coach Gautam Gambhir refused to blame the bowling, the dew or the dropped catch after India suffered a six-wicket defeat against the West Indies in the second T20I in Ranchi on Friday. Instead, he said India must take responsibility for failing to defend a total of 249.West Indies chased down the target of 250 in just 18.3 overs to register their most successful T20I chase against India and level the five-match series 1-1. Shai Hope scored an unbeaten 102 while Sherfane Rutherford made 84 to guide them to victory.

‘I don’t blame anyone’

The throw proved to be important as the heavy dew made it difficult for the Indian bowlers to grip the ball. Mayank Yadav also dropped Rutherford when the batter was on 38, giving him another chance to build his innings.However, Gambhir refused to blame either the conditions or a poor catch for India’s defeat. He said the team had to accept the fact that they couldn’t defend a big unit.“I’m not blaming anyone and I’m not blaming anyone. The bottom line is we couldn’t defend 250. They batted extremely well and deserved to win.“We still have a lot of work to do because when you play against dangerous teams like the West Indies, you have to figure out how to defend, especially when you lose the toss,” he said.“Throwing is out of your hands and catches are dropped in sports. That’s okay.”

‘You Shrug No Defeat’

Gambhir said India cannot ignore the defeat or use the difficult bowling conditions as an excuse. He emphasized that the team must find ways to stop the opposition from chasing big totals, even on flat pitches with dew.“You don’t shrug off any defeat. If you want to keep getting better, you don’t want to sweep anything under the rug. We’re a world champion team, so we want to keep getting better.“Obviously it’s tough bowling conditions. We know bowling on flat wickets with dew is tough, but we have to find a way to stop the opposition, especially when they lost two wickets in the first over and then three in the first six overs,” he said.“Obviously it was tough but credit to West Indies for the way Shai Hope (102 not out) and Sherfane Rutherford (84) batted. We know they are world class batsmen, especially in this format. It was tough for us but we will keep improving.”

Mayank’s early strikes are not enough

One of India’s positives was Mayank’s opening spell. The fast bowler regularly clocked over 140 km/h and dismissed Kamil Pooran and Shimron Hetmyer off successive deliveries in the first over. He later overtook Rovman Powell with a delivery clocked at 149 km/h.However, Gambhir said that the match cannot be judged by what happened in the opening session.“I have played enough cricket to know that games are not decided in the first match. West Indies are obviously a strong T20 side. We respect them and know how dangerous they are.”“Games are not won or lost in the first over. The game of cricket is won or lost by the way you play consistently over the course of 40 overs.”Gambhir also backed Mayank to continue bowling at his natural pace.“A fast bowler should aim like a fast bowler. Not a slower bowler.“When you can bowl at 150 kph, bowl at 150. If you can bowl at 120, bowl at 120. When you’re playing as a fast bowler, it’s your duty to bowl fast like a fast bowler,” he said.“That’s what he did today and that’s why he was successful.

Gambhir wants a fair contest between bat and ball

Asked if India wanted a better pitch after another high-scoring match, Gambhir said he wanted a good match between bat and ball. He had earlier described Guwahati’s surface as a duvet.“Don’t you want a good contest between bat and ball? Of course we want what you want.”“If you want to see sixes and fours, we want to see that too. If you want a close match between bat and ball, we want that too.”“The bowlers are our bowlers. They are not foreign bowlers. Their careers are also at stake. They have worked hard, as has everyone else in the dressing room. If there is an even match between bat and ball, that will be good. We will see better cricket.”

Hope, Rutherford propel West Indies to record chase

India’s inability to defend 249 came after Sanju Samson returned to form with a brilliant 82. Shreyas Iyer scored 40 off 18 balls while Tilak Varma remained unbeaten on 44 off 18 deliveries to take India to 249/5.Samson and Ishan Kishan put on 97 runs for the second wicket. Samson reached his fifty in just 21 balls and helped India get off to a good start after being asked to bat.Kishan scored 43 off 22 balls before being dismissed by Roston Chase. Chase also removed Shivam Dube who made seven as India lost wickets in the middle overs.Samson’s innings ended on 82 when he was caught in the 15th over. Iyer and Tilak then added quick runs to help India post their highest ever T20I total against the West Indies.The visitors got off to a shaky start as Mayank struck twice in the opening over. But Hope and Rutherford took control of the chase and attacked the Indian spinners despite the difficult conditions.Hope reached his half-century off 24 balls and finished unbeaten on 102 off 45 deliveries, hitting six fours and nine sixes. Rutherford scored 84 off 37 balls, with seven fours and seven sixes.The pair added 120 runs in just 54 balls to set the West Indies firmly on course. Rutherford’s dropped catch by Mayank proved costly, but Gambhir refused to use the missed chance as an excuse.Romario Shepherd then scored 34 off 13 balls to provide the final push as West Indies completed the chase in 18.3 overs to level the series at 1-1.