Gautam Gambhir finally breaks his silence on Ro-Ko future, but doesn't guarantee them spot for ICC Cricket World Cup 2027

Gautam Gambhir also praised Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad for their centuries in SA ODIs

India head coach Gautam Gambhir was mightily pleased with the Indian team’s performance in their 2-1 ODI series win against South Africa. This came after India defeated South Africa in the third and final ODI in Vizag on December 6 by nine wickets.

South Africa had posted 270 runs, with Quinton de Kock scoring 106 runs after being asked to bat first by India’s stand-in captain, KL Rahul. In response, Yashasvi Jaiswal hammered 116*, and Rohit Sharma made 75 runs, adding 155 runs for the first wicket. Then Virat Kohli made 65* as India won the match by 9 wickets.

Since the next 50-over World Cup is still two years away (one and half), head coach Gautam Gambhir said there was no reason to read too much into their performances.

“They are world-class players, and their experience is important in the dressing room. They’ve been doing it for a long time. Hopefully, they can continue doing the same, which is going to be important in the 50-over format,” Gambhir said after India’s nine-wicket win over South Africa in the series decider.  

Virat Kohli won the Player of the Series for scoring two centuries and one fifty, while Rohit Sharma made two half-centuries in the series.

“Gaikwad and Jaiswal should be ready whenever they get that opportunity”: Gautam Gambhir

While Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli received praise from Gautam Gambhir, the head coach also had some encouraging words for Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal. Gaikwad and Jaiswal played in the ODI series as Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer were out due to their injuries.

When pressed about where the two seniors stood in terms of the 2027 World Cup, Gambhir said, “First, you have to realize that the ODI World Cup is two years away. It’s important to stay in the present, and that young boys coming into the setup grab their opportunities.”

“Someone like Rutu (Gaikwad) has batted out of position, but he’s a quality player. We wanted to give him an opportunity in this series because of the kind of form he was in with India A. And he grabbed that opportunity with both hands when we were under pressure. Getting that kind of 100 was proper quality. And Yashasvi as well; we’ve seen how much quality he has, especially in Test cricket. It’s just the start of his career, especially in white-ball cricket. Hopefully, he has a massive future ahead, and so does Rutu,” he added.

They are far from guaranteed a position in the upcoming series against New Zealand in January, even though Gaikwad scored a century while batting at No. 4, and in the third and final ODI, Jaiswal scored an undefeated century following disappointing returns in the first two.

“Try and give them opportunities wherever we can, because we want a reasonable group of players—probably around 20-25—before the World Cup. So whenever we are able to give them opportunities, we’ll do that. But once your captain and vice-captain are back, obviously they are your starters. They (Gaikwad and Jaiswal) should be ready whenever they get that opportunity,” Gambhir added.

India’s next ODI series will be in January when they host New Zealand for three ODIs.

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