Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], September 23 : Indian cricket team head coach Gautam Gambhir has said the team remains optimistic about qualifying for the World Test Championship (WTC) final, adding that winning the upcoming series against New Zealand and Australia will give them the best opportunity to reach the summit clash.
Speaking to JioStar ahead of India’s home season, Gambhir said the focus is currently on the upcoming New Zealand and Australia series and emphasised the importance of winning every Test match.
India are currently placed fifth in the World Test Championship (2025-2027) standings with five wins, four defeats and two draws from 11 matches. Despite winning their recent Test series against Sri Lanka 1-0, India’s points percentage dropped after a draw in the second match of the two-match series, leaving them fifth ahead of their upcoming Test series against New Zealand, starting November 19.
India will play two Tests against New Zealand in November-December before hosting the Aussies for a five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test series in January-March.
Gambhir said India do not necessarily need six wins to qualify for the World Test Championship final, as five victories could also keep their hopes alive depending on other results. He said the team remains optimistic and will focus on winning every Test, adding that victories in the upcoming New Zealand and Australia series would give India the best chance of reaching the final. Gambhir called both series challenging, highlighting the significance of a possible Test series win in New Zealand after nearly two decades and the difficulty of facing Australia in a five-match series.
“I'll tell you one thing, that's not true that we need to win six, because we can manage with five as well, but again, because Australia is playing South Africa, then South Africa is playing England, and New Zealand is playing Australia. But more importantly, it's about every Test match that you want to go out there and win. As simple as it can get,” he said while speaking to JioStar.
Gambhir said it is about winning both the series. 
“If we can go on to win both the series which are going to be in front of us, we will give ourselves the best chance to qualify for the World Test Championship. And till the time we've got that opportunity and chance of reaching the World Test Championship final, we will always be optimistic. And that's the kind of person I am, that even if you've got the slimmest of chance, we've got to go out there and give our everything possible. And more importantly, I think we've got two massive series coming up. If we can go on to win both the series, it's going to be a massive feather,” he said. 
“When was the last time India went on to win a series in New Zealand? Probably in 2006 or 2007. The last time, which is what, 20 years back? If a young side like this can go and do that, it's going to be a huge, huge achievement. And then Australia at home for five Test matches is never easy. So I know we've got our task cut out, but I'm sure we're going to go out there and probably prepare to the best of our ability and try and give everything possible. What better achievement than that?” he added. 
Gambhir also said he is looking forward to the upcoming Tests. 
“Looking forward to it. That is probably one thing which I'm absolutely looking forward to, because playing against Australia at home, and obviously it wasn't the best when we went to Australia. And for me, I think it is going to be India versus Australia, but before that, it is New Zealand,” he said.
The Indian Test team has recently faced difficulties while dealing with spin in home conditions, an area where they were once considered dominant. India suffered a 0-3 whitewash against New Zealand in the 2024-25 home Test series and later lost 0-2 to South Africa in the 2025-26 season, with their batters struggling against spin in both campaigns.
However, Gambhir said improved preparation helped India handle spin better during their recent  Sri Lanka Test series, where they scored over 400 runs in both matches. He highlighted that the team got 10 days to prepare against spin before the series, unlike the South Africa series where limited practice time affected preparation. Gambhir said the focus ahead of the New Zealand and Australia series will be on preparing well and improving the ability to counter spin.
“You could see that in Sri Lanka, we played two Test matches, and we got more than 400 runs in both the innings. And the reason was that we prepared extremely well. We went 10 days before the Test match, we could prepare playing spin, and then you could see the results as well. The thing is, I'm not going to give any excuses, but that's the reality. When we played the Test series against South Africa, we were coming after playing a T20 series from Australia. And we had two days before the first Test match. I remember coming from Brisbane, and then we reached Calcutta. We had two practice sessions, and we were straightaway into the Test match against South Africa,” he said. 
“When we went to Sri Lanka early, you could see the way guys played spin, because Sri Lanka isn't easy conditions. In their own backyard, the weather, their spinners, their experienced spinners against our batting lineup. If you can get 400-plus in both the innings in both the Test matches, that just shows that there is a lot of improvement happening. So we will have to prepare well before New Zealand and before Australia, and obviously the focus is on spin, yes, that how well can we manage and how well can we negate spin,” he added.