Gautam Gambhir's struggles in Test cricket since January 2010

 

By Nishad Pai Vaidya

 

Gautam Gambhir’s knock of 55 in the third Test against the West Indies at Mumbai was an exhibition of solid defence combined with attacking strokeplay. Since his return from injury during the Champions League T20, the Indian opener has looked in good shape and in decent form. The inside-out shots over cover, the strolls down the wicket continue to be a regular feature in his game and it just indicates his positive frame of mind. However, his early dismissal in the second innings capped off a worrying tendency of low scores from his bat as he casually played a ball to point.

 

In the midst of the brilliance of his efforts during the World Cup earlier this year and the One- Day Internationals (ODIs) before and after it, his struggles in Test cricket have gone almost unnoticed. The once prolific Gambhir who bagged the “ICC Test Player of the Year” award in 2009, hasn’t been very consistent in the longer version for almost 23 months now. Since the end of the Bangladesh tour in early 2010, the southpaw hasn’t scored a hundred, which is very surprising when you consider his record in the 18 months preceding the said campaign.

 

The numbers reflect a very difficult phase for Gambhir in Test cricket as injuries have prevented him from featuring in all the games and his consistency level has dropped. It is important to look at his overall record, followed by his stats at the end of January 2010 and his numbers since then.

 

	M	Runs	Avg	100s	50s
Overall	44	3531	47.71	9	18
From debut to Jan 31, 2010	29	2760	57.50	9	11
From Feb 2010 to present	15	771	29.65	0	7

 

It’s astonishing Gambhir’s struggles haven’t attracted attention. In the said period, Gambhir has averaged only 29.65 and his career average has gone down by almost ten points. His hasn’t scored a hundred since early 2010, and that just highlights the fact that he hasn’t spent enough time in the middle.

 

There have been seven fifties in the period of consideration, but the numerous sub-30 scores have dented that average severely. Out of those seven half centuries, three of them were fantastic efforts in South Africa. The 80 he scored at Centurion came in a situation where India had their backs to the wall. The half century in the first innings of the Cape Town Test earlier this year helped set a good platform for the middle-order, but his 64 in the second innings was a reminder of his grit and fighting ability when the team required to save the game.

 

Apart from these knocks, there hasn’t been much to boast about. There were three second innings ducks in 2010 besides a few sub-30 scores. This isn’t something one expects from a batsman whose 11-hour long battle with the New Zealand bowling in Napier saved a game for India.

 

However, one must note the fact that injuries prevented him from playing two of the three Tests in Sri Lanka in July-August 2010. He also missed the Bangalore Test against Australia, one in which back-up opener, Murali Vijay scored a century. In Englandearlier this year, freak accidents wrecked his whole tour and he wasn’t a hundred percent to put in fighting performances.

 

Gambhir’s tough phase can be attributed to back luck in the fitness department coupled with a few ordinary efforts. Some of the knocks he has played in the ongoing Test series against West Indies have been good but he needs to carry on to score the big ones. With the Australia tour coming up, it is crucial that he converts his good touch to big results.

 

Harbhajan Singh’s axing has sent out a very strong message and each player in the Indian set-up would know that only consistent performances would matter. In fact, selectors had waited too long to do away with the off spinners services. The next time they may not wait that long and drop the player who isn’t up to mark.

 

The precocious Ajinkya Rahane is waiting in the wings. Gambhir needs to get runs quickly and consistently to ensure he remains in the playing eleven. Clearly, the southpaw is under pressure.

 

(Nishad Pai Vaidya, a 21-year-old law student, is a club and college-level cricketer. His teachers always complain, “He knows the stats and facts of cricket more than the subjects we teach him.")