Indian players pose with the series trophy after winning the T20 cricket international series between New Zealand and India in Hamilton, New Zealand, Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026. AP/PTI

While India succumbed to a seven-wicket defeat at Hamilton on Sunday, the issue at the top of head coach Gautam Gambhir’s mind was workload management amid an intensely busy schedule while acclimatising to New Zealand conditions in a very short timeframe.

A second successive defeat brought the series score to 3-2 in favour of the visitors, but Gambhir was all praise for his team for coming out on the right side of the result.

India had only one practice session between landing in Kiwi land and the first T20I in Wellington. The previous home series against the West Indies ended on October 17. They landed in the New Zealand capital on October 20, trained the next day before the series began on October 22.

“It’s an incredible effort because the boys got only one day to prepare.…