‘A dig at Rohit Sharma & Virat Kohli’: Steve Harmison on Gambhir’s milestone remarks after T20 World Cup win

Former England fast bowler Steve Harmison believes Gautam Gambhir may have taken a subtle dig at senior Indian stars Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli with his comments on milestones after India’s triumph in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.

India recently lifted the T20 World Cup title after defeating New Zealand in the final by 96 runs. In the post-final press conference, Gambhir made a strong statement about the importance of team success over individual records. Gambhir said milestones should not be the focus in a team sport and that winning trophies should always be the priority.

“Milestones don’t matter, trophies matter. For too long in Indian cricket we have spoken about milestones, and I hope that as long as I am here, we are not going to focus on milestones. You can see it very clearly in the last three games as well. Look at what Sanju did - 97 not out, 89, and 89. Imagine if he had been playing for a milestone; probably we wouldn’t have got to 250,” Gambhir said.

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“So I think this message is for you guys as well: stop celebrating milestones, celebrate trophies. That is what is important. The bigger purpose of a team sport is to win trophies, not just score individual runs. It has never mattered to me and it will never matter to me. I think I’ve been very fortunate that Surya and I are on the same page, especially on this front,” he added.

Harmison backs Gambhir’s remarks

Harmison interpreted these remarks of Gambhir as a subtle message directed at Rohit and Kohli. The former England pacer added that while he has had mixed views about Gambhir in the past, he liked the message behind it. Harmison also said it will be interesting to see how things unfold when the senior players return to the ODI setup in the near future.

“I enjoyed that from Gambhir. I thought it was a little dig at Rohit and Virat, talking about how he is not interested in milestones and that it is all about the team winning. I like that message. Sometimes I struggle with Gautam - I struggled with him when he was a player, and at times I struggle with him as a coach as well. But I liked that," Harmison said on talkSPORT Cricket.

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It felt like he was saying that even if everything is going in our favour, it is about the team and the dressing room, not about individual milestones. To me, it sounded like a bit of a dig at Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. So it will be interesting when they walk back into the ODI dressing room in the not too distant future. Kudos to Gambhir because he has just won a trophy.”

Many fans and experts believe the current lot of Indian players is less concerned about personal milestones and more focused on team-first approach. Samson, who was named Player of the Tournament, also spoke about the same approach after India’s title win in Ahmedabad.

Some critics have even accused senior cricketers in the past, including Virat Kohli, of slowing down while approaching 50s or 100s, even when the team required a faster scoring rate. Several experts argue that in T20 cricket, taking a few extra balls to reach a personal landmark can hurt the team, especially while setting a target. During a chase, it is still fine if a player goes for 50 or 100, considering they are in a situation to do so in regard to the game.