File image of Abhishek Nayar and Gautam Gambhir.© AFP

Aakash Chopra has rubbished the rumours of head coach Gautam Gambhir’s ouster.© BCCI

Basit Ali has criticised Team India’s batting coach for not doing his job.© AFP

India take on New Zealand in the second Test match in Pune© AFP

India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said on Tuesday that middle-order batters KL Rahul and Sarfaraz Khan are locked in a selection battle for the second Test against New Zealand here even though head coach Gautam Gambhir is keen to give the former, a long rope. With India looking to bounce back from the eight-wicket thrashing at Bengaluru in the opening Test, focus will be on the team combination with Washington Sundar being added to the squad. Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant are both aiming to shake off injury concerns for the match starting Thursday.

“Yeah, there’s no point in sugarcoating it, there’s a fight for a spot,” ten Doeschate told the media when asked if Rahul and Sarfaraz were battling for a place in the team, here at the MCA Stadium ahead of India’s training session.

“Sarfaraz was obviously brilliant in the last Test. I went to KL after the last Test (and) said how many balls do you play at (and) miss at? He didn’t play at (and) miss at one ball and that’s what tends to happen when you’re not getting runs.

“There’s certainly no concerns about KL, he’s batting nicely, he’s in a good mental space. But we are certainly going to have to fit seven pieces into six spots for this Test and look at the pitch now and decide what’s going to be best for the team,” he said.

Sarfaraz scored a second-innings 150 in the Bengaluru game, while Rahul remained off-colour in both essays.

While admitting that it is difficult to keep Rahul out of the equation in the Test format, ten Doeschate said head coach Gautam Gambhir is “keen to” give him a long rope.

“It’s not like we’re worried about his form. If you go on just the past three months since Gauti has been in here, he’s keen to give him (Rahul) as much rope as we can. We have a lot of faith in him,” he said.

“But at the same time, it’s a very competitive environment, with Sarfaraz getting 150 plus runs (222 not out) in the Irani Trophy final. The decision will be what’s best for the team, but we’ll certainly back all the guys in,” he added.

Pant, who did not keep wickets for a significant part of the opening Test, and Shubman Gill, who missed the match due to stiffness in his neck, are close to attaining their full fitness.

“Rishabh is pretty good. I think Rohit (Sharmna) touched on it the other day. He was having a little bit of discomfort at the end range of his movement with the knee. But fingers crossed, he’ll be good to keep in the Test as well,” he said.

“He (Gill) looks so (available for this Test). He has batted last week in Bangalore, he had a few nets, he’s got a little bit of discomfort, but I think he’ll be good to go for the Test,” he added.

Team India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate couldn’t control his laughter after Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja were seen imitating pacer Jasprit Bumrah‘s bowling action in front of him. The incident took place after India captain Rohit Sharma opted to bowl in the second Test against Bangladesh on Friday. Before the start of the play, Ten Doeschate, the former Netherlands batter, had joined the players for the pre-match warm-up routine. However, he was reduced to splits after seeing Kohli and Jadeja’s antics.

The two were seen mimicking Bumrah’s bowling action. Ten Doeschate couldn’t control his laughter and was seen covering his face with a baseball glove.

Virat Kohli and Jadeja mimics Bumrah’s bowling action infront of him #Rajinikanth #WorldTourismDay2024 #DevaraBlockbuster #INDvsBAN pic.twitter.com/s2KTeQSoEy

— Mr. Maurya (@MrMauryaInfra) September 28, 2024

Meanwhile, bad light followed by heavy rain ended play before tea on day one of the second Test. The visitors 107-3 after early stumps were taken at the Green Park Stadium.

Mominul Haque, on 40, and Mushfiqur Rahim, on six, were batting when dark clouds made visibility tough and umpires took the players off the ground after lunch.

The match could be the last Test outing for former Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan, who announced his impending international retirement on Thursday.

Dim light turned into heavy rain and officials called off play after the covers were laid out, with more downpours forecast for Saturday in the northern Indian city.

India, who lead the two-match series 1-0, elected to field in overcast conditions and fast bowler Akash Deep vindicated captain Rohit Sharma’s decision with two wickets in the first hour of play.

He removed openers Zakir Hasan, caught out for a duck, and Shadman Islam, trapped lbw on 24, with his seaming deliveries to the left-handers.

Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto, who made 31, put on 51 runs with Mominul to play out the remainder of the first session, but first-match hero Ravichandran Ashwin broke the stand after lunch.

(With AFP Inputs)

Indian cricket team assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate was candid in his admission that the desire to do well overseas has dented Indian batsmen’s ability to play spin and his immediate task is to make them adept in it again ahead of an important season that features five Tests at home. Traditionally strong against spin, India lost 27 wickets against Sri Lankan tweakers in the three-match away ODI series earlier this month, which they lost 0-2.

It was India’s first bilateral ODI series defeat against the Lankans in 27 years. “We got undone against Sri Lanka. The mindset of India has been such that they’ve been so desperate to do well overseas,” Doeschate told Talksport Cricket.

“The focus has moved to doing well in Australia and England. We’ve kind of let playing spin, which was always a strength of the Indian team, fall back a little bit.

“That’s one thing I’m looking forward to helping with, getting to that position where Indians are the best players of spin in the world again,” said Doeschate.

India is scheduled to face Bangladesh and New Zealand at home across five Test matches in September and October. Both these sides have handy spinners in their ranks.

Doeschate, a former Netherlands all-rounder with considerable coaching experience around the world, said playing spin is about making a mental shift rather than bringing about major technical changes.

“I don’t think much of what we’re going to bring is technical knowledge. It’s more about mindsets, situational awareness, and how we think they can control certain phases of the game.

“We need to throw ideas out there… de-briefing and keeping the mental space really good. That’s going to be really important,” he elaborated.

The 44-year-old Dutchman, who will be assisting head coach Gautam Gambhir along with Abhishek Nayar, said the team is also desperate to win the Champions Trophy next year.

“There’s the Champions Trophy (February 2025). With only three ODIs left in preparation, it’s going to be really challenging to switch between the formats and get the team ready for that, which again is something they’re desperate to win,” he said.

Doeschate said qualifying for the World Test Championship (WTC) final in June next year is another important goal for Team India.

Currently, India are leading the WTC table with Australia in close pursuit, and Doeschate wanted to use the 10 Tests that India are scheduled to play to cement that position of strength.

“In terms of what we’re looking forward to… qualifying for the WTC final… there’s a great opportunity with 10 Tests left.

“We have five (Tests) in India and then we are going to Australia (for another five Tests), which is going to be great.” Doeschate said walking into the Indian cricketing establishment was a daunting task, particularly after them winning the T20 World Cup in June.

“In terms of timing (his appointment), it’s quite difficult to walk into a team that’s just come back with the (T20) World Cup.

“But in terms of what’s ahead of us for the next 18 months, it’s mouth-watering as a coach. It’s all the series you want to be involved in and all the challenges you want to come up against,” he said.

Ahead of the first T20I against Sri Lanka, India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate has joined the team in Pallekele on Thursday. In a viral social media picture, the former Netherlands batter was seen wearing Team India’s training gear. Ten Doeschate is one of the two assistant coaches, the other being Abhishek Nayar, in new India head coach Gautam Gambhir‘s support staff. For the record, it’s the first time the Indian cricket setup is seeing two assistant coaches. Rahul Dravid‘s tenure as head coach ended last month, while the contracts of batting coach Vikram Rathour and bowling Paras Mhambrey were not extended either.

Only fielding coach T Dilip was retained from the previous regime. Meanwhile, there are no mentions of a batting or bowling coach in Gambhir’s support staff, with the former KKR mentor opting for two assistant coaches instead.

On Thursday, Team India took part in a training session, with ten Doeschate being a part of it.

India’s New Assistant Coach Ryan ten Doeschate Has Joined the Squad ahead of the Sri Lanka Series #INDvsSL #SLvIND pic.twitter.com/jTjcvnBLvx

— (@Faizanali_152) July 26, 2024

Earlier this week, Gambhir confirmed the names of two assistant coaches that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has approved. 

Though the complete list of coaches will be confirmed only after the Sri Lanka tour, Gambhir is happy to see the board agreeing to most of his demands as the head coach of the Indian team. During the media briefing, Gambhir revealed that his former Kolkata Knight Riders mates, Ryan Ten Doeschate and Abhishek Nayar have joined him as assistant coaches.

“This is going to be the crux of the support staff. As I said, we still have one month after the Sri Lanka tour. We will try and finalise after the Sri Lanka tour. But, I have worked with people like Abhishek Nayar, Ryan Ten Doeschate very closely. In the last two months, especially in the IPL, I have enjoyed working with them. They are thorough professionals. Hope Ryan and Abhishek can have a successful stint.

“Hopefully, we can have a successful tenure as coaches. I am really looking forward to work with the rest of the other guys as well. I have had some really good feedback from the players about the other guys. I am really looking forward to working with them. My experience and learning have been been very simple,” Gambhir said.

Ever since Gambhir’s appointment was made official, Morne Morkel has emerged as a potential candidate to take over as bowling coach.

After months of specualtion, Gautam Gambhir‘s appointment as head coach of the Indian team was made official earlier this month by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Gambhir, who replaced Rahul Dravid at the helm, is already in Sri Lanka with the Indian team for the upcoming white-ball tour. Gambhir was one of the two candidates interviewed for the role by BCCI’s COC, following his successful stint as mentor of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). The likes of Ricky Ponting, Justin Langer, Mahela Jayawardene, and Stephen Fleming, were also reportedly in the race.

However, the BCCI’s priority was always an Indian. While Gambhir’s appointment was made official on July 9, after Rahul Dravid’s contract came to an end, former India pacer Ashish Nehra was also floating in the media.

During a recent interaction, Nehra has opened up about why he didn’t apply. The 45-year-old insisted that his children are young, and he was not in the mood to travel for nine months.

“Meri abhi kabhi us tareh soch nahi gayi hai. My kids are young. GG ke bacche bhi abhi young hai par sabki soch alag alag hoti hai, toh I am very happy where I am. I am not in the mood to travel for nine months (I never thought about it. My children are still young. Gautam Gambhir also has young children, but everyone has different ideas. That’s why I am happy where I am. I am not in the mood to travel for nine months),” Nehra told Sports Today.

Meanwhile, Gambhir also confirmed the names of two assistant coaches that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has approved. 

Though the complete list of coaches will be confirmed only after the Sri Lanka tour, Gambhir is happy to see the board agreeing to most of his demands as the head coach of the Indian team. 

During a media briefing, Gambhir revealed that his former Kolkata Knight Riders mates, Ryan Ten Doeschate and Abhishek Nayar have joined him as assistant coaches.

“This is going to be the crux of the support staff. As I said, we still have one month after the Sri Lanka tour. We will try and finalise after the Sri Lanka tour. But, I have worked with people like Abhishek Nayar, Ryan Ten Doeschate very closely. In the last two months, especially in the IPL, I have enjoyed working with them. They are thorough professionals. Hope Ryan and Abhishek can have a successful stint.

“Hopefully, we can have a successful tenure as coaches. I am really looking forward to work with the rest of the other guys as well. I have had some really good feedback from the players about the other guys. I am really looking forward to working with them. My experience and learning have been been very simple,” Gambhir said.

Gautam Gambhir and Ajit Agarkar in press conference© X (Twitter)