Gautam Gambhir knows every blade of grass at Eden Gardens.Among India’s most storied venues, this ground — and this city — have given him more than most. In his playing career, Gambhir enjoyed an exemplary record at the Eden Gardens. Now that he has transitioned to the coaching side, and is at the helm of the Indian cricket team, his experience of the venue came in handy in his team’s five-wicket triumph over West Indies, in what was a virtual quarter-final at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.Reflecting on the victory, he told The Quint at the post-match press conference:Gautam GambhirThe best part is that I've played a lot of games at Eden Gardens. I've seen a lot of games in Eden Gardens as well. And obviously it's a great chasing ground. And we always knew that it's probably the quickest outfield in the world at the moment. And so chase is never out of control. Till you have wickets in hand, you can chase anything on this ground. We saw that in the IPL as well, where 260-270 were getting chased as well. So we knew that if we can have wickets in hand, we were always under control. View this post on Instagram T20 World Cup 2026: Sanju Samson, and the Art of Being SelflessSanju Samson Was the Leader of the Chase, but He Didn’t Do It AloneWhile the pitch at Eden Gardens, coupled with its outfield, indeed make it a paradise for batters, targets of over 190 runs are seldom chased down in this competition. Prior to this fixture, it had happened on only five occasions, and every time India had a target of over 180 runs, they lost.Though Sanju Samson starred in the chase, scoring a 50-ball 97 and staying unbeaten, Gambhir credited partnerships for the win.Gautam GambhirI thought the partnerships are important, irrespective of how the format is, which format we are playing. Partnership, that partnership between Sanju and Surya obviously settled the nerves as well. So I thought those small - small partnerships can make a massive role and someone had to break the game. So Tilak break the game for us in the middle with that cameo and then Sanju batted till the end. So I thought it was a very clinical run chase.T20 World Cup: Cometh the Hour, Cometh Sanju Samson as India Qualify for SemisHe also emphasised on his philosophy of a collective being greater than the sum of its parts.Gautam GambhirThis is a team sport, and this will always remain a team sport. For me, I think Shivam's, those two boundaries are as important as Sanju's 90, because if he wouldn't have been able to hit those two boundaries, probably that 95, you won't have even spoken about. So it's not only about 95 - yes he played a special inning, but those small contributions actually helps you win games as well. The big contribution makes headlines. The small contribution, the contribution that can help the team win, cross that line, is going to be very important. And that's why I say that this is going to be the philosophy going forward till I am there.