India head coach Gautam Gambhir might be preparing to help the Rohit Sharma-led Indian team in Australia but he also has one eye on what is happening in South Africa where the Suryakumar Yadav-led Indian team is engaged in a 3-match T20I series. Speaking to the media ahead of his flight to Australia, Gambhir encountered a rather unrelated question when the topic of Sanju Samson's performances in South Africa came up. Though Gambhir is the head coach of India's T20I team too, VVS Laxman has been given the boys' charge in the Rainbow Nation at the moment.
As a reporter credited Gambhir for Samson's performances, the head coach refused to take any credit.
"Not at all; I think it's nothing to do with me. I think it's his ability. It was all about giving him the right number and backing him. I think ultimately it's his hard work. What he is doing for Indian cricket is just the start; it's not the end. Hopefully, he can continue taking this form forward," Gambhir said in the press conference.
"For me, I think the good sign is that some of the young players are really coming through, which is always healthy and good for Indian cricket," he added.
Samson scored a century in the first match of the series, becoming the first Indian in history to record two consecutive tons in the shortest format in international cricket. However, he couldn't follow it up in the second T20I, incurring a duck.
Gambhir is now focused on the next task at hand, which is the 5-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy, a solid show in that would also help India's World Test Championship final hopes.
"We have got a lot of experienced players who have been to Australia a lot many times. Their experience will come in handy for the young players as well. These 10 days are going to be very crucial but come the 22nd morning, we should be absolutely ready and ready to fire from ball one," he said.