Gautam Gambhir, India’s head coach, slammed the lack of game time for Hardik Pandya, insisting the all‑rounder must bowl 10 overs before the 2027 World Cup—otherwise he’ll be "half‑cooked" on the field.
The upcoming three‑match ODI series against the West Indies will start on November 7, but both Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah will be absent—Bumrah is on Asian Games duty and Pandya hasn’t yet recovered to bowl a full 10‑over spell after the IPL.
Workload management is at the core of Gambhir’s plan. The tour of New Zealand will feature 12 matches across formats: 5 ODIs, 2 Tests, and 5 T20s, with the first Test in Wellington on November 19—just three days after the fifth ODI in Tauranga. He said, "We need to give some batters a break from white‑ball to move into Test cricket," pointing to players like Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Gambhir remains a strong advocate for Test cricket, saying, "A strong Test nation is a strong cricketing nation," while acknowledging his team’s recent mixed results—winning the Champions Trophy and T20 World Cup but losing to New Zealand and South Africa in Tests. The next phase of India’s preparation is the New Zealand tour, which will test the team’s resilience and depth ahead of the 2027 WC.