Gautam Gambhir is under pressure as India looks to stay alive in the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC 2027) cycle, with a two-test series against Sri Lanka starting from August 15 in Galle. India is at the 5th spot in the WTC table, while Sri Lanka is at the No. 6 spot.

Serious concerns have been raised by Team India's recent Test performances, as their troubles against strong spin under familiar conditions were made clear by their crushing home losses to South Africa and New Zealand. Turning tracks, which were once thought to be their greatest asset, have instead brought attention to the batting unit's obvious flaws.  

The circumstances in Sri Lanka are predicted to be similar to those in India; thus, the series will be another important test of the team's capacity to deal with spin and adjust under duress.

In the face of mounting criticism over India's recent Test woes, former BCCI selector Sandeep Patil has backed head coach Gambhir, arguing that the team's subpar results cannot be attributed to a single person.  

Patil criticized the batters' failure to manage spin and questioned the team's preparation for the home series defeat to New Zealand, claiming that all players were equally responsible for the disappointing results.

"The Sri Lanka tour is crucial for everyone; why only Gambhir? If Gambhir has failed to perform, so have the players. It is not right to pick on one guy. We were not able to play spinners and lost the home series against New Zealand because they came prepared. They practiced on turning wickets. Whereas our team was practicing at the CoE on good tracks," Sandeep Patil told Times of India.

On the other hand, former India opener and coach Lalchand Rajput has urged patience with Gautam Gambhir, arguing that judging the head coach during a period of transition would be unfair.

He stated that with the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Gambhir is leading a team undergoing transition, and the coaching staff should be doing well with more support.

"I still feel that as a coach, there will be ups and downs. You can’t be winning all the time. The Indian team is going through a rebuilding process. And when the team is going through it, you have to give more time to the players and the coach. Greats like Rohit and Kohli have quit two formats, while India have a new T20 captain in Shreyas Iyer and have tried several new players in the T20 series in England," said Rajput.

The first Test will be played in Galle from August 15, and the second Test will be played at SSC, Colombo, from August 23 onwards.