5 major key takeaways from Gambhir-Agarkar press conference

The new head coach of India, Gautam Gambhir, and the chief selector, Ajit Agarkar, engaged in a conversation with the press ahead of the upcoming Sri Lanka series. It was Gambhir's first press conference as head coach and he did a pretty fine job in answering the questions of the reporters. India's next tour is against Sri Lanka and the ODI and T20I squads are announced. 

There will be several players who will be missing the series but that won't matter much because Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will be playing together in the ODIs. Apart from them, there are players like Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya in the T20Is who have the capabilities to handle the team really well. There were a lot of key takeaways from the press conference held with the head coach and chief selector. 

Let's discuss the five major key takeaways from the Gambhir-Agarkar press conference:

1. We thought Suryakumar Yadav was a good choice: Ajit Agarkar

While talking about the captaincy, chief selector Ajit Agarkar said that the management felt Suryakumar Yadav to be a better captain candidate than Hardik Pandya despite the all-rounders' performance. The main reason behind removing Hardik from captaincy is the injury rate. SKY will bring more stability to the team with his patience and with Pandya, he gets injured most of the time. With SKY, the management is looking at a longer run. 

"We thought Suryakumar Yadav was a good choice, he showed his talent. Hardik is an important player for us as well. Fitness is a concern as well, we want to manage him better" said Agarkar. 

2. We can only pick 15: Ajit Agarkar

When the question regarding the exclusion of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Abhishek Sharma came, the selector gave a generic answer which didn't seem fair to the players and the efforts they've been putting in the last few years. While both players deserved a chance, the management didn't give them that opportunity. 

"Any player who is dropped will feel bad. Look at Rinku, he performed really well ahead of the T20 World Cup, but couldn't make the cut. We can only pick 15," said chief selector Ajith Agarkar.

Also Read: Ajit Agarkar's bold remarks on Ruturaj Gaikwad and Abhishek Sharma's omission from T20I squad

3. It's between two mature individuals: Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir slammed the reporters present there who had questions related to his and Virat Kohli's relationship on and off the field. The answer given by him suited the situation really well which shows that he was prepared for those kinds of questions. 

"Good for the TRP, but my relationship is not public. What kind of a relationship do I share with Virat Kohli... I think it's between two mature individuals. On the field, everyone has got the right to fight for their own jersey and come back to a winning dressing room”, said Gambhir.

Also Read: Head coach Gautam Gambhir drops update on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s future

4. Can't say right now that there are going to be three different teams: Gambhit

Head coach Gambhir also spoke about different teams in different formats and clarified that they don't have information regarding the different teams in different formats. But he did mention that if the players can play in two or more formats, they are free to play in the team.

"Going forward these things happen. Can't say right now that there are going to be three different teams. T20 will be in transition with world-class players retiring. The more players that can play both all formats, the better," said Gambhir.

5. Shami has started to bowl which is a good sign: Agarkar

Now that the Test season is coming up faster than ever, India will be playing against countries like Australia, where they'll require their lethal bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami. Talking about Shami, Agarkar said that Shami has started bowling at the NCA which is good news for the team. 

"Shami has started to bowl which is a good sign. Sept 19 is the first Test and that was out main goal," said Agarkar.