Gambhir signals white-ball breaks for key batters before New Zealand Test series
India head coach Gautam Gambhir told JioStar on September 23, 2026, that some of the team's key batters could be rested from white-ball cricket to prepare for the upcoming Test series in New Zealand. He said switching from 50-over cricket to Test cricket in a short span presents a challenge for players.
Gambhir highlighted that India's packed itinerary complicates format transitions, noting the first Test in Wellington begins on November 19, just three days after the fifth and final ODI against New Zealand in Tauranga, and that the 12-match tour will cover all three formats. Although Gambhir did not specifically name New Zealand during his remarks, the schedule underlines the turnaround issues he described.
Gambhir said workload management might require giving batters a break and warned of the difficulties in moving from white-ball to red-ball preparations, saying, "Often for Test match preparation, you will have to give your batters a break as well from the white-ball to move into Test cricket, because coming from T20 to one-day cricket is easy." He raised the prospect that India could rest leading players for a few ODIs and listed Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Ravindra Jadeja and Nitish Reddy as potential Test plans players, adding that with only two days between the final ODI and the first Test, workload management could become an important factor in India's selection.
On the broader availability of three-format players, Gambhir said continuity is valuable for a coach but predicted fewer players will sustain all three formats, asserting, "Look, ideally for any coach it is very important that as many players play all three formats, the better it is, because continuity in international cricket is very important," and, "So, as much as the coach wants, as much as the selectors want, whatever they do, you will have very few three-format players in the coming times, because you will have to keep rotating your players, whether they are spin bowlers or fast bowlers."
Gambhir reiterated his prioritisation of Test cricket, stating, "When you are getting the new guys in, obviously trying to make them feel how important Test cricket is, because I'm a very big believer that a strong Test cricketing nation is a strong cricketing nation. "It's not the other way around. I've never believed that a strong T20 cricket nation is a strong cricketing nation. So red-ball still remains our priority."
Discussing preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup, Gambhir said senior players Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya will be important for the tournament in South Africa, and he underlined their combined value in both bowling and batting roles: "Whether it's Hardik, whether it's Jasprit Bumrah, both of them are going to be extremely important for us in South Africa. Because the way if you talk about Jassi or if you talk about Hardik, very few teams have a player like that who can bowl 10 overs for you, plus bat at number six or seven, plus with that impact." He added concerns specific to Hardik's preparation, saying, "Especially for Hardik, because he needs game time as well. Because after the IPL he hasn't played a lot of cricket. So if the focus is only that he has to play the 50-over format, then he might be short of cricket. "Game time going into the World Cup is going to be extremely, extremely important. You cannot go there half-cooked. So you should have enough game time, your rhythm should be so good, because going to the World Cup, there are no ifs and buts."
Gambhir also defended Shubman Gill's captaincy and backed the young leader despite recent ODI setbacks, saying, "In ODIs, he (Gill) is very fortunate that he has got the likes of Rohit and Virat to help him on and off the field. Leaving out anyone in Indian cricket from the playing eleven is always going to be tough. "But when you have to do that as a young captain, it is probably the toughest job for any coach and captain to do it. So far, he has done that. He has actually ticked all the boxes." The coach acknowledged Gill has had a difficult run in ODI cricket, with India losing series against England, Australia away and New Zealand at home, and added, "I feel that he has done all the right things. He has had a bit of a tough time in One Day cricket. But I am sure, I think things will turn around because he has done all the right things,".
Gambhir reflected on his two years in charge, noting both successes and setbacks: India won the ICC Champions Trophy and T20 World Cup during his tenure but also suffered Test series defeats against New Zealand and South Africa at home. He summarised his experience by saying, "I think I've had my own share of ups and downs, I think I've had my own failures and success. But again, I've always believed that when you take up that kind of a responsibility, there will always be ups and downs."
India's preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup will begin with a three-match series against the West Indies at home; Jasprit Bumrah will miss that series due to his Asian Games commitments, while Hardik Pandya is still not fit to bowl his full quota of 10 overs in ODIs.
