Now Reading: Gambhir says Guwahati pitch unfair after record ODI chase
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Gambhir says Guwahati pitch unfair after record ODI chase
The Story in Brief
India head coach Gautam Gambhir criticised the batting-friendly pitch at Guwahati's Barsapara Cricket Stadium after India chased a record 406 against West Indies on Wednesday, 30 September, winning by eight wickets and sealing the series 2-0. Gambhir told Star Sports: 'This is not cricket, this is only batting.' He said wickets offering so little to bowlers were 'not fair' and called for a better contest between bat and ball. The match saw 811 runs scored, with Shubman Gill hitting an unbeaten 223 and Rohit Sharma 101 for India, while West Indies' John Campbell, Shai Hope and Amir Jangoo each scored centuries.
Gambhir expressed sympathy for bowlers, noting that fielding restrictions, two new balls and modern power-hitting leave them few options. He defended giving young bowler Auqib Nabi his ODI debut in a series-deciding match rather than a dead rubber, saying it builds pressure experience ahead of the 2027 ODI World Cup. India's batting coach Sitanshu Kotak also criticised the pitch, saying: 'You do feel for the bowlers.' Former India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik told Cricbuzz: 'I don't think this game was fun to watch,' questioning the format's health.
India lead the series 2-0, with the final ODI scheduled for New Chandigarh on Saturday, 3 October.
Indian Opinion Analysis
All nine sources report Gambhir's criticism of the Guwahati pitch with near-identical quotes, making the coverage uniform on his central complaint. The three crictracker.com articles widen the frame by adding Kotak's and Karthik's separate critiques, which the other outlets omit, giving readers a fuller sense of internal dissent. No source takes a pro-government or government-critical stance, the story is about pitch conditions, not political accountability. The uniform reporting confirms Gambhir's 'not cricket' line as the dominant narrative, while crictracker.com alone supplies the supporting voices that reinforce the same argument. The next concrete date is the third ODI on 3 October.
Coverage: 9 sources, 9 neutral
Sources (9): espncricinfo.com (neutral report), ndtv.com (neutral report), timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report), timesnownews.com (neutral report), ddindia.co.in (neutral report), rediff.com (neutral report), crictracker.com (neutral report), crictracker.com (2) (neutral report), crictracker.com (3) (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 9 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Methodology and corrections.
Update, 1 October 2026: this story now draws on 9 sources.
Update, 1 October 2026: further reports on this story from ndtv.com, m9.news, sentinelassam.com.
