Coach Gautam Gambhir believes in me more than I believe in myself, says Akash Deep

India’s fast bowler Akash Deep said head coach Gautam Gambhir had more belief in him than he had in himself on the England tour. Deep was the star of the show at Edgbaston, Birmingham, where he scalped 10 wickets in the match. Deep returned with figures of 4-88 in the first innings and then picked 6-99 in the second essay. Overall, Deep’s figures of 10-187 were the best for any Indian fast bowler in English conditions.

The Bengal cricketer scalped 13 wickets in three Test matches against England at an average of 36.46.

Deep also scored a fine knock of 66 runs as a nightwatchman in the second innings at Kennington Oval to help India strengthen their lead. The fast bowler added a crucial alliance of 107 runs with Yashasvi Jaiswal.

“You aren’t aware of your capabilities. See, I was telling you, you can do it. You have to play with this dedication always,” Akash told PTI, quoting Gambhir’s words.

“Gautam bhai is a very passionate coach. He always motivates us. He believes in me more than I believe in myself, in both my batting and my bowling,” he added.

On the other hand, Deep showered praise on Shubman Gill for his captaincy. The fast bowler said Gill is not a rookie leader as he has captaincy experience of leading the Gujarat Titans for two seasons.

“He is a very good captain. It’s not like he’s a new captain. He’s already been an IPL captain for a couple of years, which is a big platform, and that experience counts,” Akash said.

“With Shubman as captain, I didn’t feel like I was playing for the first time. He’s very supportive. When a captain backs you and understands things well, especially when you’re down, it makes a big difference.

“I played in the Duleep Trophy under his captaincy last year, so it wasn’t the first time. He’s a cool customer with plenty of ideas, and when someone is calm, it helps in making good on-field decisions.”

Akash Deep has been ruled out of the upcoming Duleep Trophy, and Mukhtar Hussain has been named his replacement.