'Not 100, make that 200 percent' - Gambhir feels India should have played Ranji Trophy before Australia series

Gautam Gambhir (Image credit: Twitter)

India were expected to sweep the series after impressive wins against Australia in the first two Tests in Nagpur and Delhi. But the Indian batting unit faced a reality check at Indore in the third Test as they collapsed against the Australian spinners and lost the match by 9 wickets. The pitches in the first three matches of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar series were spin-friendly, and Indore was a rank turner. India's top-order batters have struggled to score runs in the series so far, prompting former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir to offer advice to Team India to fix their spin woes.

Speaking to Sports Tak, Gambhir said that Indian batters should have played a domestic tournament before the start of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which would have helped them to adapt to the longer format of the game more easily.

“Not 100 percent, make that 200 percent. The Indian batters should have played a few Ranji Trophy matches ahead of the Test series against Australia. However, they shouldn't have played those matches just to prepare. It doesn't matter if you conduct 20-day camps or bat in the nets," he said.

Gambhir criticized Australia's 'negative mindset'

The former India opener also spoke about Australia's struggles in the first two Tests, where they lost miserably to Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. Gambhir, who captained the Delhi Ranji team, opined that Steve Smith and Co should have played a practice match in India to get in a positive mindset ahead of the series.

“Australia struggled in the first two matches because of their mindset of not playing practice matches. This is a negative mindset. The same goes for the Indian batters. And I am talking about the batters, the fast bowlers need rest and they can take a break. But the batters should go play in Ranji Trophy, make centuries and double centuries. It is very important to play red-ball cricket before an important series,” he said.

Meanwhile, India have retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after their first two wins, but they need to beat Australia in the ongoing final Test to clinch the series and qualify for the World Test Championship final. Meanwhile, Australia, who already booked their tickets to the Oval for June, started the fourth Test in Ahmedabad with a bang. Centuries by Usman Khawaja (180) and Cameron Green (114) gave the visitors the upper hand after the end of the second day. However, India ended Day 2 with Rohit and Gill not out on 36 and will look to bounce back tomorrow.