"West Indies as the opposition at home is not the way you prepare for Australia" - When Gautam Gambhir made a brutal statement during IND vs WI Tests

Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir once slammed the side for playing home Tests ahead of the daunting tour of Australia in 2018. Two months before the 2018-19 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, India played the West Indies in two Tests, five ODIs, and three T20Is at home.

They won both the Test matches against the West Indies by massive margins of an innings and 272 runs and 10 wickets, respectively. However, ahead of the second West Indies Test, Gambhir questioned whether India should play the lowly West Indian side before the challenging Australian tour.

"It's probably just the ICC calendar and I don't see any other relevance. When you go to Australia, either you bring a stronger opposition or you go early and prepare with as many practice games as you can. West Indies side seems depleted, no disrespect to the team, but when you go to Australia, you've got to prepare in a different way. West Indies as the opposition, at home, is not the way you prepare for Australia," said Gambhir (via Circle of Cricket).

Gambhir continued:

"This is the mistake we made in South Africa, then, the same way in England. I think 1-2 warm-up games before the Australia tour will not be enough. So maybe you go to Australia a month early. the Test squad goes there 20-25 days early. Then try and play at least 4-5 warm-up games before the first Test. This way you get acclimatised to the wickets and the conditions. I hope this happens because this probably our best chance at winning an overseas series."

After the two Tests, India also defeated the West Indies in the ODI and T20I series by 3-1 and 3-0 margins, respectively.

Team India created history in the 2018/19 tour of Australia

Despite Gautam Gambhir's claims, Team India achieved the seemingly improbable in the 2018/19 Test series in Australia. Led by an inspired Virat Kohli, the Asian giants pulled off a thrilling 31-run win in the series opener at Adelaide.

However, they suffered a heavy defeat by 146 runs in Perth, leaving the four-match series level at 1-1. Team India then surprised many by decimating the Australians in the crucial third Test in Melbourne by 137 runs.

They continued their domination of the hosts in the series finale at Sydney by posting 622 in their opening innings and bowling the Aussies out for 300. However, bad weather forced the Test match to end in a draw.

Nevertheless, India won the series 2-1 and created history by becoming the first-ever Indian side to win a Test series on Australian soil.