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NEW DELHI: This Indian summer has seen the upgradation of Delhi Daredevils opener Gautam Gambhir, a process begun in the World T20 in South Africa last year and consolidated further on the IPL’s big stage. With 504 runs from 12 games at 45.81, and five 50s, he has been head and shoulders above most of the competition by dint of sheer consistency alone.
Some batsmen have struggled to adapt to T20, others have talked about unlearning the basics, but Gambhir looks a natural in this shortened format of high stakes, soaking up the pressure nonchalantly while trusting, as he says, his ‘‘instinct’’.
The runs have come in torrents, but mention all talk of him bucking the T20 trend by defying the conventional power-hitter image and Gambhir takes offense. ‘‘I don't think that’s true,’’ he says, ‘‘I have 65 boundaries so far in the IPL and my record suggests that’s pretty powerful.’’
Records are a hard thing to argue against. The IPL has seen interestingly deliberate adjustments being made by batsmen in the quest for quick runs - shuffling to the off to create room, playing beside the line, learning to trust eye-body coordination above all else - but Gambhir has merely been an amused, detached observer of such trends: He hasn’t had to change a thing.
The two most distinctive features of his batting in this tournament, though, have been the increased frequency of shots in an extended ‘V’, rather than just square or behind square like in the past, and the time he has had to adjust his strokes even when charging down the ground on a premeditated assault. Obviously, handling the pace hasn’t been a problem either.
Only one bowler has impressed him: Shaun Pollock, who Gambhir says bowls ‘‘more balls in the corridor of uncertainty than I’m comfortable with’’. Bowlers have often managed to tuck up a Sehwag or a Ganguly, but Gambhir has given them ample food for T20 thought.
Some would call it fearlessness, Martin Crowe prefers to term it ‘‘forgetting the stumps’’, but Gambhir has his own adage. ‘‘I don’t think so much about making alterations when I bat in a T20 game,’’ he says, ‘‘In this format, I don’t think about whether my head is still, where my front foot is. It’s all about instinct. I’m a naturally attacking player and T20 gives me the freedom to play my strokes. It doesn’t make me circumspect like some others.’’
For most other top-order batsmen, this would be easier said than done. But Gambhir is a past master in the art of quick accumulation. ‘‘For one, I’ve always played beside the line, rather than behind the line, from a very early age, even in four-day games,’’ he says, ‘‘It’s working for me and I see no need to change.’’
Gone are the days when Gambhir’s Clark Kent-demeanour and nervy slashes would be mistaken for signs of weakness. This is a new, improved version, increasingly solid at the crease, with the results to show for it. Maybe playing under two skipper-batsmen - Dhoni and Sehwag - who themselves thrive on audacity and confidence rather than any specific ‘technical’ fixation has been of immense value.
But Gambhir prefers to look inward. ‘‘Even in the One-dayers, like in Australia recently, I have been very consistent over the past few months. I think the slight change was when I started setting targets for myself. I can’t tell you specifically what brought it about. It’s basically about the hunger to get runs, and more runs. So far it’s gone my way.’’
So is a top-order batsman’s ‘form’ above mere formatting? If it’s all about the consistency, and not much else, shouldn’t Gambhir’s IPL performance prompt a selectorial rethink even when it comes to the other versions?
‘‘That I can’t answer,’’ he says, ‘‘But I think terms like ‘form’ and ‘consistency’ are a bit overused. It’s basically all about the confidence. If a batsman is confident of scoring runs against a particular bowler, he can do it in all forms of the game. Confidence is bigger than form. It’s a very big reason for a batsman’s success.’’
But won’t he have to alter his approach in Tests? ‘‘Not so much in ODIs, maybe, but in Tests, yes. It’s a deliberate change, because you have more time to build an innings. It’s not all about caution. I had a good Ranji season too, so my form is not T20 specific.’’
Some batsmen have struggled to adapt to T20, others have talked about unlearning the basics, but Gambhir looks a natural in this shortened format of high stakes, soaking up the pressure nonchalantly while trusting, as he says, his ‘‘instinct’’.
The runs have come in torrents, but mention all talk of him bucking the T20 trend by defying the conventional power-hitter image and Gambhir takes offense. ‘‘I don't think that’s true,’’ he says, ‘‘I have 65 boundaries so far in the IPL and my record suggests that’s pretty powerful.’’
Records are a hard thing to argue against. The IPL has seen interestingly deliberate adjustments being made by batsmen in the quest for quick runs - shuffling to the off to create room, playing beside the line, learning to trust eye-body coordination above all else - but Gambhir has merely been an amused, detached observer of such trends: He hasn’t had to change a thing.
The two most distinctive features of his batting in this tournament, though, have been the increased frequency of shots in an extended ‘V’, rather than just square or behind square like in the past, and the time he has had to adjust his strokes even when charging down the ground on a premeditated assault. Obviously, handling the pace hasn’t been a problem either.
Only one bowler has impressed him: Shaun Pollock, who Gambhir says bowls ‘‘more balls in the corridor of uncertainty than I’m comfortable with’’. Bowlers have often managed to tuck up a Sehwag or a Ganguly, but Gambhir has given them ample food for T20 thought.
Some would call it fearlessness, Martin Crowe prefers to term it ‘‘forgetting the stumps’’, but Gambhir has his own adage. ‘‘I don’t think so much about making alterations when I bat in a T20 game,’’ he says, ‘‘In this format, I don’t think about whether my head is still, where my front foot is. It’s all about instinct. I’m a naturally attacking player and T20 gives me the freedom to play my strokes. It doesn’t make me circumspect like some others.’’
For most other top-order batsmen, this would be easier said than done. But Gambhir is a past master in the art of quick accumulation. ‘‘For one, I’ve always played beside the line, rather than behind the line, from a very early age, even in four-day games,’’ he says, ‘‘It’s working for me and I see no need to change.’’
Gone are the days when Gambhir’s Clark Kent-demeanour and nervy slashes would be mistaken for signs of weakness. This is a new, improved version, increasingly solid at the crease, with the results to show for it. Maybe playing under two skipper-batsmen - Dhoni and Sehwag - who themselves thrive on audacity and confidence rather than any specific ‘technical’ fixation has been of immense value.
But Gambhir prefers to look inward. ‘‘Even in the One-dayers, like in Australia recently, I have been very consistent over the past few months. I think the slight change was when I started setting targets for myself. I can’t tell you specifically what brought it about. It’s basically about the hunger to get runs, and more runs. So far it’s gone my way.’’
So is a top-order batsman’s ‘form’ above mere formatting? If it’s all about the consistency, and not much else, shouldn’t Gambhir’s IPL performance prompt a selectorial rethink even when it comes to the other versions?
‘‘That I can’t answer,’’ he says, ‘‘But I think terms like ‘form’ and ‘consistency’ are a bit overused. It’s basically all about the confidence. If a batsman is confident of scoring runs against a particular bowler, he can do it in all forms of the game. Confidence is bigger than form. It’s a very big reason for a batsman’s success.’’
But won’t he have to alter his approach in Tests? ‘‘Not so much in ODIs, maybe, but in Tests, yes. It’s a deliberate change, because you have more time to build an innings. It’s not all about caution. I had a good Ranji season too, so my form is not T20 specific.’’
