'Players Actually Need...': Ajinkya Rahane Breaks Down Causes To India's Woes Under Head Coach Gautam Gambhir

Former India batter Ajinkya Rahane gave his blunt assessment on what he believes went wrong for India in the ODI series loss to New Zealand. The former player reasoned that India's recent struggles are a result of a lack of clarity and excessive changes in the team.

Ajinkya Rahane shared that if India wants to build a team for the 2027 World Cup, they would need to provide proper clarity to all the players. Rahane was speaking after India’s 1-2 ODI series defeat to an injury-ridden New Zealand side at home.

India began the three-match series well with an opener win under captain Shubman Gill; however, defeats in the next two matches handed New Zealand the series. Notably, even Virat Kohli's brilliant performance was not enough to save the sinking ship.

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Ajankya Rahane Reveals Reasons Behind India's Woes

Seasoned players like Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, and Kuldeep Yadav performed notches below expectations, while the team overall looked shaky.

While speaking on Cricbuzz, Rahane shared, "See, there will be tough questions. India lost five ODIs in the last nine. And that’s the reason: too many changes. Again, that’s why I said: you are looking at the World Cup, where players actually need that security, that clarity from management. If you are going to play certain players in that format, it’s always about clarity."

He further added, "So yes, tough questions will be asked, which is very natural, I feel, because especially the fans, the Indian cricket is so connected. Everyone wants India to do well, India to win the match, India to win the series, especially in India. Playing against New Zealand, which was probably the New Zealand A or B team, due respect to all the players. But expectations were there that we all thought that India would win easily, probably 3-0."

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ODI Woes Under Gautam Gambhir

Under Gautam Gambhir, India have lost ODI series against Sri Lanka, Australia, and now New Zealand. The recent ODI defeat has again raised questions about Gambhir's management and his preference for all-rounders. Additionally, his decision to play KL Rahul as the no. 6 batter has backfired on more than one occasion.