Team India skipper Shreyas Iyer and head coach Gautam Gambhir are now under the scanner following the back-to-back T20I series defeats in overseas conditions. A 0-2 whitewash to Ireland, followed by a clean sweep of 0-4 in England, creates huge problems for Gambhir and Iyer.

India not only suffered a 7-match winless streak under the Gambhir-Iyer era, but also dropped from No.1 to No.2 after 1,600 days.

The fifth and final T20I match of the series was an opportunity for Team India to avoid a clean sweep and secure their No.1 spot. The visitors did not even manage to inch closer towards the 258 target and suffered a 56-run loss.

Following the conclusion of the T20I series, former cricketer Hanuma Vihari voiced his dissatisfaction with India’s management and slammed Gambhir’s biased selection.

Lack of Bowling Efforts from Indian Bowlers

Here are the main reasons why England compiled a mammoth 257-run target against the Men in Blue:

• India conceded 17 sixes against England, which is their joint-second-highest against any team in T20I cricket.
  
• The bowling attack was compromised as all bowlers leaked 20+ runs in their entire spell:
  
  
  • Axar Patel (0/63 in 4 overs)
  • Prince Yadav (0/60 in 4 overs)
  • Suryansh Shedge (0/39 in 3 overs)
  • Prasidh Krishna (1/38 in 4 overs)
  • Arshdeep Singh (0/33 in 4 overs)
  • Shivam Dube (2/22 in 1 over)
    
• Apart from Prince Yadav, Prasidh Krishna and Arshdeep Singh, there were no frontline bowlers. Especially while competing against England’s strong batting line-up, having a core of specialist bowlers can restrict the flow of runs.

Indian Bowlers Who Conceded 20+ Runs in A Single Over

Neither the Indian bowlers bagged wickets nor controlled the flow of runs in the crucial phases of an inning. Rather, here are those bowlers who leaked 20+ runs in a single over:

• Axar Patel: 25 Runs in the 10th over and 20 runs in the 16th over
• Suryansh Shedge: 24 runs in the 14th over
• Prince Yadav: 21 runs in 15th over
• Shivam Dube: 22 runs in 19th over

Indian Players Not Secured Under the Gambhir Era

Under Gautam Gambhir’s era, no Indian player has been safe. After a few poor performances with the bat, talented players like Sanju Samson and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi were dropped, while Suryakumar Yadav was sacked as captain. But Gambhir’s favoritism towards players like Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Washington Sundar, Harshit Rana, Shivam Dube, Prince Yadav, and Prasidh Krishna continued.

Shockingly, RCB’s winning squad in IPL 2026, which featured names such as Rajat Patidar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Krunal Pandya, was overlooked for selection.

Former Indian batsman Hanuma Vihari lashed out at Gambhir and the BCCI selection committee for including certain favorite players in the squad and sidelining deserving talents :

“See! There are certain players who Gautam Gambhir wants to play. I don’t see the squad adding any value to the players included.

On what basis were the players selected for the team? Dube has been out of form either in batting or bowling. Similar is the situation with Suryansh Shedge, who didn’t impress with bat or ball. I don’t understand why Washington Sundar still secures his place in the squad despite his contribution not being so great over the years, ” Vihari said.

Spinners and Playing XI selection the Biggest Problem in the England Tour

Furthermore, Vihari pointed out the subpar bowling performance of spinners throughout the 5-match T20I series in England:

“Certainly! There is no doubt that the spinners were the biggest threat to India’s success. Let it be Varun Chakravarthy, Axar Patel or Ravi Bishnoi.

The main problem in this tour was the selection of the squad and the playing XI. You allowed Samson to play matches in the Ireland tour and then benched him, only to give a chance to Sooryavanshi, and then dropped him after three matches.

No players in the team have security. If they don’t perform well, they will be kicked out of the playing XI. They should have stability in the long run. If you rely on playing with Sooryavanshi, then give him a chance for five to six matches and then decide if he is eligible enough to play or not.

I don’t think this is the right attitude (comments against Gambhir and Iyer’s playing XI selection). Players should have a secure feel, or else it would negatively impact their performance,” Vihari explained.

Shreyas Iyer’s Captaincy Under Scrutiny

Following two consecutive T20I series losses in Ireland, Shreyas Iyer became the only Indian captain to experience the longest winless streak in the first seven matches (including the washed-out fixture). Here is how Team India recorded multiple unwanted feats under his leadership following the 0-4 series loss to England:

• First whitewashing defeat in a 5-match T20I series against any team.
• Second captain after Virat Kohli (in 2019) to lose two consecutive T20I series.
• England recorded their highest ever T20I innings total (257/3 in 20 overs) against India.
• Fourth captain to remain winless in first seven T20I matches after Brendan Taylor, Elton Chigumbura and Thisara Perera.
• And many more humiliating records to be listed….