India chased down a colossal target of 406 runs in just 43.3 overs.
India head coach Gautam Gambhir strongly criticized the pitch at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati after the Men in Blue pulled off their highest-ever successful ODI run chase against the West Indies on Wednesday (September 30).
Despite India hunting down a colossal target of 406 runs in just 43.3 overs to secure an eight-wicket victory and wrap up the series 2-0, Gambhir labeled the flat deck as "not cricket, this is only batting" due to the extreme lack of balance between bat and ball.
The high-scoring second ODI saw a combined 811 runs scored across less than 94 overs. The visitors posted 405/7 featuring centuries from John Campbell (101), Shai Hope (104), and Amir Jangoo (114), marking the first time an ODI team lost despite three individual centurions.
India's successful chase was headlined by Shubman Gill’s unbeaten 223 off 133 balls—the fastest ODI double-century off 117 deliveries. The skipper was well supported by Rohit Sharma's 101 off 75 balls as the duo stitched a 255-run opening stand to lay the foundation.
"Look, if I have to be absolutely honest, I feel I think there has to be a bit of more contest between bat and ball, because I think you talk about cricket - but this is not cricket, this is only batting," Gambhir told Star Sports after the game. "Because imagine a young bowler bowling on this wicket, and the opposition getting 400 and then we go on to chase 400. Obviously, for the records it's outstanding, for the crowd it's outstanding, for the broadcaster it's outstanding, but if you ask me as a genuine cricket fan and as a coach, because I have to have sympathy for the bowlers as well.
"When you bowl on this kind of a wicket, it's not fair for the bowlers. So we've got to give something to the bowlers so there's at least something which the bowlers can work with."
Gambhir sympathized with the bowlers like debutant Auqib Nabi and Gurnoor Brar, noting that modern ODI rules combined with flat pitches offer zero margin for error.
"The first thing is that you need some sympathy and a bit of margin for the bowlers," he said. "Often you can't be hard on bowlers, because sometimes bowling figures are such that they haven't bowled as poorly as their figures suggest. Because the margin is very small. Plus, I think you can only bowl in good areas because besides that, with five fielders inside, two new balls, and the kind of power-hitting there is now, bowlers don't really have many options.
"That is why, as a coach, as a support staff, the first thing you look at is, were they able to execute their bowling or their plans properly? If they were able to do that, then you shouldn't be hard on them. If you get too hard just looking at their analysis, then we will never be able to develop bowlers. Imagine Auqib [Nabi] playing his first game... somewhere you need to give them a bit of support and keep a bit of an extra cushion or extra options for them. But unfortunately, today there wasn't much for any bowler."
The Indian team has about 20 ODIs left to finalize combination for the 2027 ODI World Cup in Africa. Gambhir reckons this limited number makes every single match highly critical for evaluating potential talent.
"...you said that there is one year, but in that one year, three months will go into the IPL, three months will go into the India-Australia series," he stated. "So after this series, we have barely 20 ODIs, and 20 ODIs aren't really that many ODIs, which includes three against Sri Lanka, three against Zimbabwe. I believe there isn't much time. So whatever we plan, whatever options we prepare, we will have to do it as quickly as possible.
"So before that, whatever our options are after the IPL, whatever squad is ready in our probably bigger, broader picture, we will only play them after the IPL. So right now is the time for us to try different options. Just like Auqib got an opportunity today, we will similarly try, at least until the Zimbabwe series, to give other people an opportunity and see what they can offer us in this format," Gambhir remarked.
Instead of waiting for a dead rubber when the series might already be secured, Team India chose to debut Nabi while holding a 1-0 lead.
The coach explained that throwing young bowlers straight into high-stakes situations replicates the unique, high-pressure environment of a World Cup. He emphasized that dead-rubber matches lack that essential pressure, whereas experimental exposure in live series games is crucial for building a resilient squad for the quadrennial event.
"We could have given Auqib a chance in the next match too when it's a dead rubber, but in a dead rubber, you don't have that pressure which comes with the pressure of winning a series. And we all know that the World Cup is all about pressure. Cricket isn't going to change like that, only the pressure will be different because the World Cup comes once in four years, so we want to put bowlers under pressure
"For example, Gurnoor [Brar]. Having Gurnoor bowl in the first 10 overs, bowling at the death, I know people will talk about his analysis, but the more he bowls in tough conditions, in tough situations, the better it is for Indian cricket. Because you can have him bowl in the middle overs and get good analysis or good stats for him, make him bowl defensively, but the more we expose them at such times, the better it is for Indian cricket," Gambhir concluded.