NZ vs IND 2026: Criticising Gautam Gambhir become everyone’s timepass, says Irfan Pathan

Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan took a direct attack on the critics of Gautam Gambhir after the first T20I against New Zealand in Christchurch. The head coach and the side were under big scrutiny for various reasons in the opening game of their tour.

In a surprise turn of events, India brought Tilak Varma at No.3 instead of Ishan Kishan which raised everyone’s eyebrows. But, after the match, Indian batting coach Sitanshu Kotak cleared that the wicketkeeper-batter sustained a right adductor strain during the game which prompted to push Tilak up the order.

Without knowing these details, people started criticising the move. In favour of the spectators, Tilak also got out for six runs in 11 balls which kind of disrupted the rhythm of Men in Blue and wickets tumbled in quick succession. Pathan reacted to those turn of events on his social media.

“So, Ishan Kishan had a niggle during the first T20, which is why he batted lower down the order. But everyone was quick to go after Gautam Gambhir for changing the batting order. Criticising him has become everyone’s favourite timepass these days,” wrote Pathan on X.

“Please, please wait a bit before passing judgment. Don’t jump to conclusions without knowing the full story. And this applies to everything in life. In the rush to get “views” and “numbers” on social media, you might end up hurting someone without even knowing the full story. Think before you judge,” he added.

Despite that collapse, the visitors bounced back brilliantly to register their highest successful run chase in T20I history. With the bat, Sanju Samson scored 67 off 33 balls before getting dismissed by New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner. Then, Shreyas Iyer contributed 42 off 28 balls and Naman Dhir did the finishing touches scoring an unbeaten 42 off 15 balls to seal the game.

Earlier, the BCCI noted that Ishan will be ruled out of the second T20I and they are monitoring his progress. India are leading the series 1-0 and the next game will happen on October 24 at Hagley Oval, Christchurch.