'Honesty is extremely important': Gambhir

India head coach Gautam Gambhir addresses the media yesterday. Pic/AFP

Asserting that "debates" in the dressing room should not come out in public domain, India head coach Gautam Gambhir on Thursday said he has had some "honest" conversations with his players and that the ongoing transition in the team will be all-encompassing.

Gambhir also side-stepped queries on whether out-of-form skipper Rohit Sharma will get a place in the final XI for the fifth and final Test against Australia starting on Friday.

Amid reports of unrest in the dressing room, the head coach sought to douse the fire by declaring that they were "just reports, not truth".

"There were some honest words is all I can say. Honesty is extremely important if you want to go on and achieve some great things," Gambhir told mediapersons on the eve of the Test match that India need to win to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and stay alive in the World Test Championship.

Transition phase

The straight-talking former opener refrained from taking names, but acknowledged that a transition is in progress and performance will be the sole criteria to stay in the side.

"Indian cricket will always be in safe hands as long as there are honest people in that dressing room. Honesty is the most important thing for any transition.

"And it's not phasing out senior players and bringing in new players. Ultimately what will keep you in the dressing room is performance," Gambhir couldn't be more precise.

If one read between the lines, it seemed that even Mohammed Shami's days as an international cricketer are numbered. Shami could not regain fitness for the current series despite being a rehab for a while. "Earlier when transitions happened it seemed, one department is taking the team forward but [in this case] transition will happen in both batting as well as bowling," he said.

Team's needs to come first

The question of natural game versus situational awareness cropped up and the coach reiterated his stand that the team's needs come first.

"Only one ideology matters and that's Team First. It's a team sport and you have to play the way the team needs you to play. You can play the natural game, but in team sport, individuals only contribute."

When Rishabh Pant's shot-selection in the Melbourne Test was specifically mentioned, he brushed it aside, saying, "I don't want to talk about individuals, they know where they stand."

So, what are the conversations that he has had with Rohit and Virat Kohli, whose dismissals outside the off-stump continue to hurt the team. "There's only one conversation and that's how to win matches for India. We all know how important that is," he said.

Unwanted public discourse

However, Gambhir said that he doesn't appreciate dressing room debates getting space in public discourse. "Debates between coaches and players should be confined between them. This sport is known for results, but conversations between individuals should stay inside the dressing room," he asserted.

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