Gambhir says coach-player talk ‘should remain in dressing room’, remains coy on Rohit's participation in Sydney Test

India head coach Gautam Gambhir responded to rumours of a rift within the team as well as leaked private conversations, saying that “debates between a coach and a player should remain within the dressing room” while emphasising on a “team-first ideology” and adding that he has had some “honest” conversations with the players.

As for the report which contained leaked conversations from within the dressing room which quoted Gambhir as saying "_Bahut ho gaya_ (I’ve had enough)", the former India opener said they were “just reports, not truth”.

“Debates between coach and player should remain in dressing room. Stern words. They were just reports not truth,” Gambhir said in the pre-match press conference in Sydney, in which he confirmed pacer Akash Deep missing the fifth Test due to back issues.

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“Indian cricket will be in safe hands till honest people stay in the dressing room. Only thing that keeps you in the dressing room is performance,” he added.

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“There were honest words and honesty is important,” Gambhir added.

Gambhir also fired a warning at batters throwing their wickets away cheaply in the name of playing their ’natural game’, saying they needed to play according to the team’s needs and no go off on an adventure of their own.

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Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has been facing a lot of heat lately for his rash strokeplay. The  27-year-old fell victim to ambitious shots twice in the Melbourne Test, the second of which was off part-time spinner Travis Head’s bowling that triggered a massive collapse in the final session of Day 5.

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“There is only one tendency and there is only one discussion - it’s the team first ideology that matters. You need to play what the team needs. You can still play your natural game in a team sport - but if the team needs you - you need to play in a certain way,” Gambhir added.

Gambhir remains coy on Rohit’s participation in Sydney Test

The former Kolkata Knight Riders and Lucknow Super Giants mentor was also quizzed on under-fire captain Rohit Sharma’s absence from the press-match press conference, and was indirectly asked if he would be retained after collecting just 31 runs in five outings in the ongoing tour at a miserable average of 6.2

“Everything is fine with Rohit. The head coach is here and that should be enough. We will decide on the playing XI after looking at the pitch,” Gambhir responded, refusing to confirm whether the ‘Hitman’ would be part of the action at the Sydney Cricket Ground or not.

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Gambhir added that he hasn’t had any conversations with Rohit or Virat Kohli, who is also in dire need of runs, apart from strategies to help the team win.

“Every individual knows what are the areas to work on. We have only had one conversation with them (and that is) how to win Test matches,” he said.

The fifth Test against Australia, dubbed the ‘Pink Test’ to raise awareness on breast cancer in memory of pace legend Glenn McGrath’s late wife Jane, will get underway on Friday, 3 January.

Having conceded a 2-1 series lead, India will be eyeing a series-leveling victory in Sydney to not only retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy that has been in their possession for nearly eight years, but to also keep their slim hopes of reaching a third consecutive World Test Championship final alive.