Is this the end of the road for Gautam Gambhir?

Is this the end of the road for Gautam Gambhir?:

From a player who once said “not wanting to play anymore” after being left out of the World Cup 2007 Squad to being the pioneer of the World Cup 2011 final at Wankhade to help India triumph to the World Cup glory, Gautam Gambhir has seen it all in his career since he made his international debut in 2004.

When the Indian selectors announced the 15-man national squad for 3 Test tour of Sri Lanka, Gambhir’s name didn’t feature in the list and when the Chief of selectors Sandeep Patil was asked about Gambhir, he said the Delhi openers name was not even discussed. With slump in his form and emergence of Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul as openers in the national test side, the time of this dashing left-hand opener seems to have eclipsed in international cricket; his poor form and growing age aren’t doing any favors either.

Gambhir who was epitomized as a player with solid technique and concentration like that of a monastic couldn’t cash in when last time he got the national call-up against England in 2014. Apart from poking edges outside his off-stump, his technique went off for a breather; the same level of solidity which once made even the likes Rahul Dravid and V.V.S Laxman proud had eroded.

He got opportunity in 4 innings on the English tour, where he could manage only 25 runs at an average of about 6. In the Ranji season of 2014/15, he complied 569 runs in 9 matches at an average of 45. But, the superlative openers in the tournament like Robin Uthappa, KL Rahul and Abhinav  Mukund accumulated runs in excess of 850. All of them are there in the reckons fighting for the openers slot which showcases that how far behind Gautam Gambhir is lagging and as he is on the bad side of age, his chances looks even slimmer.

Since 2010, the southpaw has scored 1468 runs in 27 test matches at an average of 31 which is 11 less than his overall test career average. In the last 5 years, he has played 29 test matches but has crossed the three figure mark only once which is not even a shadow of Gambhir, we know. Although, he has captained KKR and performed decently with the bat in the Indian Premier League (IPL); but it cannot be a parameter for his selection in longer format of the game.

Once he was hailed as the burly pillar and the most reliable batter in the test team and his significant opening partnerships with Virender Sehwag was one of the major reasons behind India’s rise to the no.1 rank in Tests. Gambhir was renowned for his matchless temperament and long vigils at the crease and he was always a hard nut to crack for any opponent bowler. Who can forget his 11-hour long vigil at the crease in Napier, the marathon innings to secure a draw for his team from the jaws of defeat. The 2009 ICC test match player of the year, Gauti was hailed by Virender Sehwag as the best opener of the nation after Sunil Gavaskar.

After 2011 World Cup, everything changed for him as the same man who was the pillar of side became one of the most disappointing batter for the side in India’s dreary time when they lost 8 consecutive test matches on the England and Australia tour down under.

Although, analyzing the character of Gambhir gives you a definite idea that he is not someone who would give it up easily; he is the face of ardent commitment, unmatched hard-work and resilience. But, every sun has to see the dusk, in a cricketer’s life as well there is a definite time when you can never be the same player again. Gautam Gambhir is in a similar phase.  As time is running out of his hand and the prevailing hiccups in his technique against the moving balls on the off-stump corridor are not getting any better especially in overseas conditions, his comeback seems gloomy and improbable.

Will he? Let’s wait for GG to answer it.