Gambhir Defends India's Lower Order After Test Collapse Against England: Missed Catches and Bumrah's Limited Role Exposed

India's campaign at Headingley concluded with a bitter defeat, as England completed a remarkable 371-run chase. Despite moments of dominance, India's inability to capitalize on key opportunities led to their downfall.

India amassed a total of 835 runs, featuring five centuries, including Rishabh Pant's twin tons. However, two critical batting collapses proved to be their undoing.

The first collapse saw them lose 7 wickets for just 41 runs in the first innings. Then, in the second innings, they lost 6 for 31. These collapses transformed a potentially commanding position into a chaseable target for England.

India's missed catches proved costly in the Test match. © Getty

Shubman Gill, leading the team and scoring a century in the first innings, revealed that the team was aiming for a target of around 435 runs. Head Coach Gautam Gambhir believed that India could have dominated the match had they reached 570 or 580 in the first innings.

Despite the lower order's struggles, Gambhir defended their efforts. He noted that the lower-order batsmen were attempting to contribute and that failure is a part of the game. "Even proper batters fail," Gambhir stated, emphasizing that the loss wasn't solely attributable to the lower order's performance.

Another crucial factor in India's defeat was their poor catching. They dropped seven catches throughout the match. Yashasvi Jaiswal was responsible for multiple dropped catches, including a costly miss that allowed Ben Duckett to score a match-defining 149.

Gill acknowledged the dropped catches as a concern and emphasized the need for improvement. He attributed some of the difficulties to the challenging conditions at Headingley but stressed the importance of tightening their standards.

While acknowledging the team's youth, Gambhir dismissed it as an excuse for the defeat. He asserted that representing India comes with the responsibility of striving for victory in every match.

Gambhir also confirmed that Jasprit Bumrah would only participate in two more Test matches in the series. This decision was made to manage Bumrah's workload, considering the extensive cricket schedule ahead. The specific matches Bumrah will play are yet to be decided. He expressed confidence in the existing bowling attack, emphasizing that the squad is selected based on trust in their abilities.