Team India clinched the T20 World Cup trophy in 2026 and team’s head coach Gautam Gambhir showed everyone again why people call him a merchant of victory in Indian cricket. On Sunday, the Suryakumar Yadav-led side crushed New Zealand by 96 runs at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. After clinching the trophy for the third time, at the post-match press conference, Gambhir’s words made one thing clear; Indian cricket is moving in a new direction.
‘Stop celebrating milestones, celebrate trophies’
Gautam Gambhir didn’t hold back. He said there’s no room for chasing personal records on his watch. Trophies matter, not milestones. In his own words, “I think my simple philosophy with Surya has always been that milestones don’t matter. It’s the trophies that matter. For too long in Indian cricket, we’ve spoken about milestones. And I hope, till I’m there, we’re not going to talk about milestones.”
Gambhir told the media including TheCrichub, “Stop celebrating milestones, celebrate trophies. That is going to be important, because the bigger purpose of a team sport is to be winning trophies, not scoring individual runs. It has never mattered to me, and it will never matter to me.”
Depth in the team squad remains a primary factor
Gambhir said India’s deep talent pool lets them swap players and change tactics without missing a beat. At first, I had Rinku Singh batting lower down and left Samson out. But then, they dropped Rinku, moved Tilak Varma further down, and brought Samson back to open. That clicked and Samson ended up as Player of the Tournament.
India put up a massive 255 runs in the final, the highest ever in T20 World Cup history. With Gambhir’s sharp instincts and Surya’s leadership, New Zealand folded for just 159. Gambhir summed it up perfectly as when everyone’s playing for one goal is the trophy and you get results like this. His “guru mantra” feels like the start of a new era. From here on, Indian players aren’t just chasing glory for themselves. They’re chasing it for the country.
