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Why did Gautam Gambhir decline so suddenly after the 2011 World Cup?

Varun

Varun

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I think we've seen him play his final game for India in Rajkot. While he will most certainly continue to play Ranji and the IPL, it has certainly been a fairly memorable career with peaks in both forms of the game.

The innings in the finals of the 2007 World T20 and the 2011 World Cup were the best moments in LoIs, and the second innings rearguard at Napier in 2009 was probably the most remarkable innings in his test career.

But this thread refers to his sudden tapering off after the 97 vs Lanka in 2011. What happened? As I recall, he got injured in the IPL that followed right after and missed the tour of the Caribbean. Shortly after that, we got hammered in England where the ball tonked him on his head, arm etc. (missed two tests). This was a far cry from his prolific tours of New Zealand (2009) and South Africa (2010-11) in years past.

Throughout this period, technical deficiencies were creeping into his game. It just got worse and worse as we then got whitewashed in Australia, and then lost to England at home the following year. His LoI graph was in a titanic phase as well, and gone were the steely innings he consistently played between 2007 - 2011.

Amidst all of this, he obviously got dropped from one format first, and then the other. From being a captaincy candidate at one time, he capitulated along with our other ageing players of the time although having many more years on the clock himself.

What would you put this decline down to? Lack of motivation? Too much IPL? Any substance in those rumours of the rift between him and Dhoni? And how can we prevent future players from tanking like this, if ever?
 
Dunno. He wasn't ever elite quailty so he wasn't going to get anywhere near the Fab 4 ever.

He always strikes me as a bitter, insecure guy though and I guess that consumed him too much

He had a short career but had a very successful spell of four or so years spell where Jndia won a lot of things and he had a central role to it. So he can be happy for his career but definitely seems like he's a negative guy who sees the glass half full so that isn't the case.
 
Lack of determination, motivation and mental strength; also was consumed by issues which extended beyond the middle. He became chicken hearted, let his country down and quit on his stool when he should have been a prolific senior batsman. Did well in the IPL though, I like KKR and his appointment helped turn things around
 
Just lost his skills like Sehwag, Yuvi, Zak and Bhajji.

The entire support cast of Fab 4 crumbled at the same time when they should have been taking the team forward.
 
He deserved to be MOM in the final, India lost two early wickets and under immense pressure made 97
 
Varun said:
Refer this thread, I was discussing this subject last year -> http://www.pakpassion.net/ppforum/s...about-Dhoni-s-91*-in-the-2011-World-Cup-final
Click to expand...

Dhoni stole all his glory promoting himself up after all the hard work had been done, that was gambir's finest moment as an international cricketer but decades from now people will lose their minds over Dhoni's magnificent captains inning when it was Gambir who won you the world cup final. No one has to like Gambir but that was criminal
 
One of the most arrogant cricketers that I have seen playing the game. I think mainly the success he had, albeit for a short period just got to his head. When u start making needless statements in the press clearly ur head is not in the game any more.
 
It is hard to be very good for a long time at the most competitive level.
 
India should have gave him few more matches so could have bagged a few more ducks. I personally never found him a exceptional players. He had few glory moments other then that there is nothing much to speak about him.
 
He is one of those guys who rely on hand eye coordination. His feet movement is non-existent when playing pace bowling. Kind of like Sehwag who relied on hand eye coordination too.

Gambhir is still a pretty good player of spin. However, at this age and the waning skills, him surviving the inital 10 overs of Test matches or ODI's is pretty bleak.

Same with Yuvraj too. These guys are excellnt timers of the ball and their foot work is pretty mediocre. With Age, it gets worse and at the top level, these issues can creep up on the players very fast.
 
Rahul is the future. However, a pair would certainly put Gambhir back in the mix.
 
shaz619 said:
We should award you the Sitara-i-Imtiaz
Click to expand...

What I meant was, when India had the game in the bag, I thought Gambhir would get MOM because he bailed them out of a difficult situation. Was a bit surprised when Dhoni got it
 
aliasad1998 said:
What I meant was, when India had the game in the bag, I thought Gambhir would get MOM because he bailed them out of a difficult situation. Was a bit surprised when Dhoni got it
Click to expand...

He has a streak of some rather dubious MOM wins
 
I think, after WC he lost his ODI spot as IND was looking to rebuild the team. He was still an excellent player & a very good Test opener, but he became one of the highest paid IPL players, KKR Captain, which I believe was better proposition for him (no offence, would have been same for most) than a Test opener's spot. That lack of priority, I think cost his longer game, because his game was built on determination, gutsy greet & value for wicket - skills/quality that actually you don't need to be a T20 STAR. In India, at most 35 players play Test cricket in a decade, out of 1.3 billion (& 99% of the male population dream to be a Cricketer); therefore, it's not easy to hold on to your spot, if your priority is different.

I think, eventually he was happier - could have finished with close to 100 Tests for IND, but who cares - in 15-20 years, Rahul Dravid won't exist in the mind of the then "fans". Already, with one IPL season heroics, Maxwell became almost at per of Mark Waugh ...............
 
He never got the credit he deserved for his performance in the final, with Dhoni stealing the show..

That bitterness and resentment was with him for a very long time.. seemed to have a negative effect on his career since then
 
He could never resist that dab outside off. It got him plenty of times in the 3 years before that when he was at his career peak, but that was sustainable.
 
Some players are just not meant to have decade long careers.

He peaked around 2007-2011 and then his form gradually began to decline.

Still played a few good knocks after the 2011 WC Final - most notably the VB series game vs SL in Hobart.

Still accomplished a lot and was their gun player in finals so cannot be unhappy with a decent/good career overall
 
It is always sad to see a solid player go down like this. Gambhir had it in them, but could not keep it going. Same with Trott and Bell. What could have been a mini-chapter in the book of Indian cricket is now just a footnote.

This is what makes Misbah's achievements look even more great.
 
Last edited:
Statsman said:
It is always sad to see a solid player go down like this. Gambhir had it in them, but could not keep it going. Same with Trott and Bell. What could have been a mini-chapter in the book of Indian cricket is now just a footnote.
Click to expand...

To be fair, you tend to expect that with the English players. Swann - Prior - Flintoff - Bell - Strauss - Trott - a couple of years in the limelight, max three, and then kapoot. I'm pegging down the same fate for Stokes, these guys just don't have the temperament like their counterparts in the subcontinent to have 10-15 year long careers, but they'll cause enough of a hungama in their 30 seconds of fame nonetheless.

But Gambhir over here was the exception rather than the rule in his regard, especially when compared to the rest of his teammates.
 
Gambhir at one time was in god like form. He had a purple patch for around 3 or 4 years. He and Sehwag used to be beasts at the top piling on a 100 runs very often within the 15 th over. One of the best players of spin I've seen. But he always had a bad habit against pace - used to poke around the off stump a lot. He used to dab here and poke there and get quick singles a lot which was a real strength to him. But that was never a good technique to have against pace and he started getting found out as his hand eye coordination declined.

Both Sehwag and Gambhir's reflexes declined around the same time, Sehwag knew his time was over and hung his boots. Gambhir being the typically fiesty character he is, tried to fight on and changed his stance and technique after a stint with Langer down under. But you can only get so far with a dodgy technique and it's really hard to change one's technique after 30 years.
 
It's kind of understandable. When he contributed hugely in winning you guys that 2011 WC final he subconciously fell into the thought of mind that "yeah I've pretty much done everything I needed for my country" esp after again guiding to the 2007 t20 WC as well. So he felt like he didn't need to work as hard anymore and took his form for granted until it actually dipped for real.

Looked done and dusted by the aane do series about a year later.
 
May be he became more 'gambhir' after 2011 :D

who can say what is the reason of anyone's declines but himself?
 
His decline started about an year earlier in Bangladesh tour of 2010. Remember the controversy around Sehwag becoming captain in 1st Test in BD, picking Amit Mishra and dropping Pragyan Ojha who had done well under Dhoni since his debut in 2009. When Dhoni came back for 2nd test he dropped Mishra and got Ojha back.

That is when Sehwag- Gambhir camp lost it vs Dhoni. Gambhir lost his form vs SA at home in the next series that followed, struggled vs SL and vs Aus before opting to not play a test vs Aussies in 2010 to attend sister's marriage. He recovered somwhat vs NZ and did decently in SA but it was clear that the tensions between Dhoni-Sehwag camps were rising (even though India were number 1 test side around the same time).

2011 WC final and Dhoni stealing the thunder from under Gambhir's feet was a deadly blow. Gambhir publicly kept saying win is for the team not for captain alone (which though true, did sound like a bit sour grapes against Dhoni). Opted out of WI tests and in England things went totally downhill.

That 100 vs BD in 2010 under Sehwag was the last test 100 for Gambhir.

However his tst struggles apart, he continued to be very good in ODIs and did hit a couple of ODI 100s as captain vs NZ in 2010 where we won 5-0. That also fueled captaincy ambitions which were not to be which peaked after he led KKR to IPL wins. Some statements made after those wins around atime India were struggling under Dhoni were clearly potshots at Dhoni's leadership.

In summary, captaincy ambitions, not much focus on his own technique, running feud with Dhoni and the concussion he suffered in England - all this messed up his game and he's never recovered from it.
 
Varun said:
I think we've seen him play his final game for India in Rajkot. While he will most certainly continue to play Ranji and the IPL, it has certainly been a fairly memorable career with peaks in both forms of the game.

The innings in the finals of the 2007 World T20 and the 2011 World Cup were the best moments in LoIs, and the second innings rearguard at Napier in 2009 was probably the most remarkable innings in his test career.

But this thread refers to his sudden tapering off after the 97 vs Lanka in 2011. What happened? As I recall, he got injured in the IPL that followed right after and missed the tour of the Caribbean. Shortly after that, we got hammered in England where the ball tonked him on his head, arm etc. (missed two tests). This was a far cry from his prolific tours of New Zealand (2009) and South Africa (2010-11) in years past.

Throughout this period, technical deficiencies were creeping into his game. It just got worse and worse as we then got whitewashed in Australia, and then lost to England at home the following year. His LoI graph was in a titanic phase as well, and gone were the steely innings he consistently played between 2007 - 2011.

Amidst all of this, he obviously got dropped from one format first, and then the other. From being a captaincy candidate at one time, he capitulated along with our other ageing players of the time although having many more years on the clock himself.

What would you put this decline down to? Lack of motivation? Too much IPL? Any substance in those rumours of the rift between him and Dhoni? And how can we prevent future players from tanking like this, if ever?
Click to expand...

One of my favourite players during our 07-11 years. Gutsy, determined and always up for a fight.

He might not be an ATG, but boy did he deliver for India in those years. Its not just those 2 innings in T20 and WC finals and the NZ series. But during that period he was consistently scoring runs at the top of the innings. Along with Zak, IMHO, one of the main reasons we became number 1 in tests.

He is over the hill now, and of course doesnt deserve to be in the team. But that cannot take away from what he has done for us in the field during that period.
 
MMHS said:
I think, after WC he lost his ODI spot as IND was looking to rebuild the team. He was still an excellent player & a very good Test opener, but he became one of the highest paid IPL players, KKR Captain, which I believe was better proposition for him (no offence, would have been same for most) than a Test opener's spot. That lack of priority, I think cost his longer game, because his game was built on determination, gutsy greet & value for wicket - skills/quality that actually you don't need to be a T20 STAR. In India, at most 35 players play Test cricket in a decade, out of 1.3 billion (& 99% of the male population dream to be a Cricketer); therefore, it's not easy to hold on to your spot, if your priority is different.
Click to expand...

Then it's fair to question why he hasn't retired from the international game? What has he got to gain by coming in for a game or two in place of an injured Rahul (and failing)? Why not just call it a day?
 
Varun said:
Then it's fair to question why he hasn't retired from the international game? What has he got to gain by coming in for a game or two in place of an injured Rahul (and failing)? Why not just call it a day?
Click to expand...

Retirement is a different issue - he didn't close his chances to National call; but his priority changed, which reflected in his performance (FC, List A & finally when he got the Test call). If he is not communicated clearly, he won't retire in next few years either, just like Bhajji - in south Asia, our culture is not retiring gracefully - only 3 players, if I can recall retired when almost everyone asked why, rather than why not - Sunny, Imran & Sanga. May be, I can give benefit of doubt to Murali & Mahela as well. Even our Mash is looking to play one more WC at 40 ....

However, it's not only players fault alone - our Boards are always looking to cash on the established players (players like Afridi, ST, Kapil, Wasim ... are crowd pullers, backed on best part of 20 years of glorious past, hence they are sold better as mass commodity - Sakib'll be a superstar in Bangladesh even when he will be 45 .....). Besides, after you have played for a decade or more, you must have lots of friends in the board, sometimes selector (s) are your friend or former team mate - there is always a back-door in our part of the world, in the name of "Experience" - it's always better to hang on for your moment.
 
He had a warrior, army like, nationalistic fearless attitude. I have to say his concussion during the England series in 2011 might be the sad turning point in his career.
 
I really liked him when he was at his peak. The type of players you need in your team.
 
He was a gritty player , and build important partnerships like Raina. I think apart from the above points mentioned above , India are for last some years are looking to bring in younger players , now and then, and getting rid of older players, specially in OD. That may also be the reason.
 
Because he had a massive ego + massive money + IPL + fame = bigger ego + big mouth.

Glad he's failed.

Now he can go back to twitter and talk his other nonsense about boycotts blah blah.
 
Varun said:
Then it's fair to question why he hasn't retired from the international game? What has he got to gain by coming in for a game or two in place of an injured Rahul (and failing)? Why not just call it a day?
Click to expand...

There is a reason why he became an international cricketer. You don't get to play at the top level thinking that negatively. He is probably thinking "I did it before and I can do it again".
 
He is one of those who should have made his debut earlier in my opinion. Was overlooked for quite a few undeserving guys in Tests. His decline was surprisingly rapid though. I guess he lost the hunger for runs post 2011 world Cup. Quite a sad story in my opinion.
 
He already overachieved in his career, I think after winning the World Cup he thought he achieved everything and decided to play just for fun :yk good times with Ishant
 
Nikhil_cric said:
He is one of those who should have made his debut earlier in my opinion. Was overlooked for quite a few undeserving guys in Tests. His decline was surprisingly rapid though. I guess he lost the hunger for runs post 2011 world Cup. Quite a sad story in my opinion.
Click to expand...

Sad part his how we Indians didnt give him credit for the wins. Winning a T20 Cup and World Cup and putting in those performances doesnt make him sad. His partnership with Sehwag stabilised our top order and allowed us to take the no.1 ranking in tests.

Nothing sad about Gambo. He is a champion cricketer and a great servant for Indian cricket. We need to celebrate him.

Having said that, he is past his peak and should thus retire from international cricket. But that cannot take away from his contribution to the Indian team.
 
Nikhil_cric said:
He is one of those who should have made his debut earlier in my opinion. Was overlooked for quite a few undeserving guys in Tests. His decline was surprisingly rapid though. I guess he lost the hunger for runs post 2011 world Cup. Quite a sad story in my opinion.
Click to expand...

That's really a good point! That way he could have worked a bit more on his technique and changed it perhaps for good! Also working at that age with senior team would have harnessed his future egos & sadistic attitudes. He saw the bright patch in his career probably at a wrong age!

Anyways he was a good player who worked with Sehwag at the Top-Order almost similar to Sachin-Ganguly, in fact in some way (as a combination) did better as they did that in "Test" matches (didn't bat down! Proper openers!) and also won key matches (finals). Its important to appreciate a bit in addition to criticizing his arrogance! (Who else is not arrogant? Kohli is coming out of it now! Reason is Kohli's career is timed and growing in a right way!)
 
His stats are decent enough (across all 3 formats)! So many non-Indian batsmen who are considered to be decent, above average & even brilliant - have similar stats as him, and also more arrogant than him :)) Yet he should feel sad about his achievements?!? Probably too much is expected from Indian Batsmen!
 
Sidilicious said:
Sad part his how we Indians didnt give him credit for the wins. Winning a T20 Cup and World Cup and putting in those performances doesnt make him sad. His partnership with Sehwag stabilised our top order and allowed us to take the no.1 ranking in tests.

Nothing sad about Gambo. He is a champion cricketer and a great servant for Indian cricket. We need to celebrate him.

Having said that, he is past his peak and should thus retire from international cricket. But that cannot take away from his contribution to the Indian team.
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Who didn't give him credit? I was talking strictly about his test career which never really took off like many of us expected. he was a terrific LOI batsman and probably our best player of spin for a long time. And yes i think his knocks in the Wt20 2007 and CWC 2011 were match winning knocks and he certainly was a clutch player for big occasions.
 
RamLakhan said:
That's really a good point! That way he could have worked a bit more on his technique and changed it perhaps for good! Also working at that age with senior team would have harnessed his future egos & sadistic attitudes. He saw the bright patch in his career probably at a wrong age!

Anyways he was a good player who worked with Sehwag at the Top-Order almost similar to Sachin-Ganguly, in fact in some way (as a combination) did better as they did that in "Test" matches (didn't bat down! Proper openers!) and also won key matches (finals). Its important to appreciate a bit in addition to criticizing his arrogance! (Who else is not arrogant? Kohli is coming out of it now! Reason is Kohli's career is timed and growing in a right way!)
Click to expand...

Yep. He was quite unfairly treated before 2007. I remember him scoring an ODI ton(SA?) around 2005 and then he was dropped i think almost immediately after. The selectors simply never gave him a chance to cement his spot in the team earlier on.
 
I never liked Gambhir as a batsman. I always thought he was not as good as others in the team. He did hit a purple patch for like 3-4 years in which he played some gusty knocks. I think he became complacent after the 2011 world cup and then lost motivation when Kohli was appointed vice-captain. It became clear that Kohli would be the future captain, a privilege which was supposed to be given to Gambhir.
 
Sidilicious said:
Nothing sad about Gambo. He is a champion cricketer and a great servant for Indian cricket. We need to celebrate him.
Click to expand...

Strangely there aren't too many videos of him either. Searches for "Gambhir 97 World Cup Final" or "Gambhir New Zealand test" reveal nothing.
 
I remember in the 2011/12 tour of Australia he got worked over by short balls. Not bouncers, just chest height back of a length balls angled across him. He just couldn't help him self, always pushed at them and edged to slip. He never fixed that problem either

https://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=9c0TBnTRQkY
 
Dropped for the remainder of the England series. Time to retire?
 
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