Gambhir is not going to accept that his team or captain did not perform well.
The T20 series with New Zealand comes to an end. But it has left the floor open for questions, some of which are rather uncomfortable. The fact that India lost the final two matches of the series after winning the series so easily is still something that people can't digest. The inability of our bowling lineup to constrain runs, paired with Shreyas Iyer's critique, is piling up in the media's questionnaire.
Now Shreyas Iyer did do a commendable job in the last match, with a 50 to his name. But more importantly, he was rather invisible throughout the series as a batsman. Moreover, the way he handled his bowlers was not ideal either. His story resonates within the entire Indian team. The entire lineup has given some star performances against NZ. But in the collective, they were lacking the consistency to continue attacking with a solid foundation.
But that does not matter to Gautam Gambhir
At this point, India's victory against the Kiwis in this series feels very subdued. Many wonder if the team was truly able to win against New Zealand. The entire community is thinking the ICT only slightly edges out of a defeat. And it makes people afraid about the future and how international teams are going to deal with us.
But that does not trouble Gautam Gambhir. "In my dictionary, there is no place for fear, and that word does not exist in my life. I think we are professionals, and I’ve always believed that there are no excuses. Yes, I have [felt mentally drained], to be honest, but I am strong enough to manage that. I’m strong enough to take it… that I can take the pressure, I can take the bullet," Gambhir said to the media after the loss against NZ in the 5th T20I.
The mindset that he has is undeniably aggressive. Gambhir is known for such tactics since Day 1 of his tenure as the head coach. Not only that, he also provided backing to Shreyas Iyer over captaincy woes. Gambhir simply blamed the inexperience of the bowling lineup for Iyer's issues. According to him, Iyer is doing it all right, but his team is not experienced enough to handle those decisions.
Backing the captain strongly and staying firm in the face of criticism is well and good. But that shouldn't steer him away from the fact that the Indian team lost the final two matches. And there were clear indications that the team is lacking in many aspects still. So maybe it would be best if Gambhir could accept them honestly and help the team work on those issues to improve for the better.