Everyone has responsibility, I cannot say just batters have let us down: Gautam Gambhir
Mumbai (PTI): India head coach Gautam Gambhir doesn't want to blame the batters only for the debacle against the visiting New Zealand side, saying that every player has the responsibility towards the team.
India crashed to their first Test series defeat at home in 12 years after losing the second Test by 113 runs in Pune on October 26. The hosts had lost the first Test by eight wickets in Bengaluru. In three of the four innings, the team totals were 46, 156 and 245 with batters struggling against both swing and spin.
"Everyone has the responsibility, I cannot say just the batters have let us down," Gambhir said at the press conference ahead of the third Test here from Friday.
He also ruled out bringing new players for the final Test.
"We are not in a situation where can think of that (giving chance to players who have not played)," Gambhir doused the speculations of an imminent debut being handed to Harshit Rana as reported in some quarters.
"Harshit Rana is not part of the squad. He has just come here to prepare for the Australia tour, Abhishek (Nayar) made it clear yesterday. IPL retention has nothing to be spoken about, we have a Test match here.
"Everyone is available for selection, we will take a call tomorrow."
Gambhir admitted that the Test series defeat hurt the team but said it should spur the team to do better in future.
"I am not going to sugarcoat that it is hurting. It should hurt and that will make us better. What is wrong in being in this position?
"I am sure this will push the youngsters to be better cricketers. If we have results like Kanpur, might as well have results like this and keep moving forward," said Gambhir.
He said the batters should be able to adapt to the situations of the game and perform accordingly.
"Test cricket should be played like Test cricket. If we have to get 400 runs inside a day’s play we should be able to get it. For me it is about playing the sessions as well. If we play 4.5 sessions we will have a lot of runs on board.
"A complete cricketer is one who can adapt successfully. Not just being able to hit the stands but also rotate strike successfully," he said.
Talking about the defensive technique of batters being impacted by T20 cricket, Gambhir said, "The more the T20 cricket is played (around the world), the more the people will struggle in defending.
"But the most successful players irrespective of the formats always had strong defence. We need to keep telling people the importance of defence and we are working hard on it and we will see results in future."
Asked about the Wankhede Stadium pitch around which there has been a lot of speculation, he said, "It is just a good wicket. Very difficult for anyone to judge before both teams have batted on it."
On his journey at the helm of affairs so far, Gambhir said, "I never expected a very easy run for me. I know that we lost in Sri Lanka and against NZ and it is not a good place to be. All we can do is keep working hard and we will try winning every game that we play to represent the country."
He stressed on the need for some empathy while dealing with players under pressure.
"I realise its a complete different thing when you were playing and now as a coach, need to put your arm around the players."
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Allahabad HC orders FIR against Rahul Gandhi in dual citizenship case
Lucknow (PTI): The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Friday ordered an FIR be filed against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in connection with an alleged dual citizenship controversy.
The bench permitted the state government to hand over the probe to any central probe agency after registration of the FIR.
The order was passed by a bench of Justice Subhash Vidyarthi on a petition filed by S Vignesh Shishir, who had challenged a January 28 order of a special MP/MLA court rejecting his plea for an FIR against Gandhi, the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
The special court had earlier held that it was not competent to adjudicate on issues related to citizenship.
The petitioner, a BJP worker from Karnataka, had sought registration of an FIR and a detailed probe into the matter, levelling allegations against Gandhi under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Official Secrets Act, the Foreigners Act and the Passport Act.
The complaint was initially filed before the special MP/MLA court in Rae Bareli. However, on the petitioner's request, the high court transferred the case to Lucknow on December 17, 2025.
The MP/MLA court in Lucknow subsequently dismissed the plea on January 28, 2026, prompting the petitioner to approach the high court, which has now ordered registration of an FIR.
In its order, the bench said that from a bare perusal of the allegations, prima facie cognizable offences were made out against Gandhi and hence the allegations required to be investigated.
The bench said that the special court should have looked into whether the allegations prima facie made out any cognizable offences or not, but it failed to consider it.
Earlier, Deputy Solicitor General of India SB Pandey produced the central government's records in the court relating to the citizenship controversy surrounding Gandhi.
Government counsel VK Singh also consented on behalf of the UP government that the allegations prima facie made out cognizable offences.
After having a detailed hearing, the bench found that the material on records showed that Gandhi had committed "cognizable offences" in having dual citizenship, and these allegations required to be probed.
The petitioner has alleged that Rahul is a UK Citizen and incorporated a company named M/S Backops Ltd in August 2003.
It was further submitted that Gandhi categorically admitted and voluntarily declared his nationality as British, having a Director Identification ID and London and Hampshire addresses.
In his petition, Shishir claimed that Rahul submitted the company's annual returns in October 2005 and October 2006, listing his nationality as British.
Thereafter, the company was dissolved through a dissolution application in February 2009.
According to the petitioner, the material placed before the court includes records suggesting that Rahul Gandhi may have been listed as a voter in the United Kingdom and participated in electoral processes there.
During the course of the hearing, the high court earlier directed the Ministry of Home Affairs to place all relevant records, including classified documents, before the court.
