‘Most misunderstood cricketer in India’: R Ashwin calls Gautam Gambhir an ‘unsung hero’
Ahead of the World Cup 2023 scheduled to start on October 5, Harsha Bhogle, referring to World Cup 2011, said, "That final was as much Gambhir’s as it was Dhoni’s."
- Oct 5, 2023,
- Updated Oct 5, 2023 1:06 PM IST
What better time to look back at India’s magnificent win at the 2011 World Cup than a few hours before the country is set to host the 2023 edition of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup! Who can forget the power-packed partnership between MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh? But apart from the fours and sixes and wickets, there are much more intense things at play.
In the latest episode of Kutti Stories with Ash podcast, titled ‘The Legend of Dhoni’s Men’, Ravichandran Ashwin and Harsha Bhogle look back at the momentous finale of the 2011 World Cup. The role of MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh is rather well-known. But Ashwin and Bhogle speak of a cricketer whose role, they feel, has mostly been overlooked – Gautam Gambhir.
In the conversation between the two, Bhogle said that he has always liked people who don’t attract attention to themselves and are almost hidden as part of the team. “I know to some extent that this was the coming of age of Virat Kohli…but I love Gautam Gambhir playing that role at three. Because it is not known and you will know it better than me that he was a very fine pair of spin bowling too. But he had dropped down from his position. And he provided the left-hander at 3, then you had a left-hander at 5 and a left-hander at 7. That final was as much Gambhir’s as it was Dhoni’s,” he said.
Ashwin too lauded Gambhir and called him an “unsung hero” whose dedication to the team remains unparalleled. “I think Gautam Gambhir is the most misunderstood cricketer in India…because there’s a perception out there that’s hanging. The greatest team man, the greatest individual in terms of taking a fight on and a very nice guy. He is in your face. He might not be very expressive but he is out there wanting a fight and wanting a battle. He is not only a fantastic player of spin, he was also a great reader of the game,” said the cricketer.
He said that several of Gambhir’s knocks led the team to the final that it eventually won against Sri Lanka. Even after Virat Kohli had been bowled out by Tillakaratne Dilshan, and before him the big wickets of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar had fallen, Gambhir did not let the pressure get to the team. “The kind of shots he played, the running between the wickets, the chances he took – selfless! I would have said he could have been 120-130 not out. But selfless,” said Ashwin. Gambhir had knocked 97 off 122 in the final.
“I’ve always had massive respect for the man. And I think people give him much lesser credit than he deserves,” said Ashwin about Gambhir.
Ravichandran Ashwin is part of Team India that will start its campaign in the World Cup 2023 on October 8 against Australia in Chennai. The Indian squad for the 2023 World Cup is as follows: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Hardik Pandya (Vice Captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, and Ishan Kishan.
Also read: ICC World Cup 2023: PhonePe, Dream11, LendingKart only startups among 26 sponsors
What better time to look back at India’s magnificent win at the 2011 World Cup than a few hours before the country is set to host the 2023 edition of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup! Who can forget the power-packed partnership between MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh? But apart from the fours and sixes and wickets, there are much more intense things at play.
In the latest episode of Kutti Stories with Ash podcast, titled ‘The Legend of Dhoni’s Men’, Ravichandran Ashwin and Harsha Bhogle look back at the momentous finale of the 2011 World Cup. The role of MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh is rather well-known. But Ashwin and Bhogle speak of a cricketer whose role, they feel, has mostly been overlooked – Gautam Gambhir.
In the conversation between the two, Bhogle said that he has always liked people who don’t attract attention to themselves and are almost hidden as part of the team. “I know to some extent that this was the coming of age of Virat Kohli…but I love Gautam Gambhir playing that role at three. Because it is not known and you will know it better than me that he was a very fine pair of spin bowling too. But he had dropped down from his position. And he provided the left-hander at 3, then you had a left-hander at 5 and a left-hander at 7. That final was as much Gambhir’s as it was Dhoni’s,” he said.
Ashwin too lauded Gambhir and called him an “unsung hero” whose dedication to the team remains unparalleled. “I think Gautam Gambhir is the most misunderstood cricketer in India…because there’s a perception out there that’s hanging. The greatest team man, the greatest individual in terms of taking a fight on and a very nice guy. He is in your face. He might not be very expressive but he is out there wanting a fight and wanting a battle. He is not only a fantastic player of spin, he was also a great reader of the game,” said the cricketer.
He said that several of Gambhir’s knocks led the team to the final that it eventually won against Sri Lanka. Even after Virat Kohli had been bowled out by Tillakaratne Dilshan, and before him the big wickets of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar had fallen, Gambhir did not let the pressure get to the team. “The kind of shots he played, the running between the wickets, the chances he took – selfless! I would have said he could have been 120-130 not out. But selfless,” said Ashwin. Gambhir had knocked 97 off 122 in the final.
“I’ve always had massive respect for the man. And I think people give him much lesser credit than he deserves,” said Ashwin about Gambhir.
Ravichandran Ashwin is part of Team India that will start its campaign in the World Cup 2023 on October 8 against Australia in Chennai. The Indian squad for the 2023 World Cup is as follows: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Hardik Pandya (Vice Captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, and Ishan Kishan.
Also read: ICC World Cup 2023: PhonePe, Dream11, LendingKart only startups among 26 sponsors