NEW DELHI: Former India cricketer Suresh Raina has thrown his support behind embattled head coach Gautam Gambhir, insisting that the recent slump in India's home Test performances cannot be pinned on the coaching staff alone. According to Raina, the players themselves must take ownership of the results on the field.

India, who suffered a stunning home series whitewash at the hands of New Zealand last year, now find themselves on the verge of another setback after losing the opening Test of the ongoing two-match series against South Africa.

"Gauti bhaiya (Gautam Gambhir) has worked really hard and he is not at fault. The players have to work really hard and play well. Under him we have been doing great in the white-ball format where we just won the ICC Champions Trophy and Asia Cup in Dubai earlier this year," Raina told 'PTI Videos'.

"The players have to score, the coach can only guide, advise and give support to the players," he said on the sidelines of the Indian Softball Cricket League's jersey launch here. He was unveiled as the event's brand ambassador

Raina brushed aside talk that Gambhir's position as head coach is under threat, arguing that the recent slump in home Tests is not enough to cast doubt on his future.

"If they (the players) are facing any issues, they must be communicating to the coach that this is the issue. If the players do well then the coach will also be applauded. But if the team is not doing well, it should not be that the coach should be sacked from his post," he said.

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"I have played with Gautam bhaiya, he loves the Indian cricket team, he loves cricket, I have played and won the World Cup with him. So, he has done really well for the country and it is the players' responsibility to do well," he added.

Raina, responding to criticism over India's selection decisions in the ongoing series, said that domestic performances should continue to be the primary yardstick for picking players.

"They should play domestic cricket regularly and do well there, if they do well that will automatically reflect in their performances at the international level," he said.

He also highlighted the challenges of modern cricket, including three different formats and hectic scheduling, which affect performance.

"Also the planning of the series can be better because you have to quickly switch formats from white ball and suddenly you are playing red-ball cricket again so the players I believe have less time in hand.

"The players should also improve their application in the middle, I hope this all is getting noticed...," he said.

Raina said he is looking forward to the ODI series between the two sides starting November 30 where senior-most batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will be in action.

"Ro-Ko (Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli) will be back, yes. They did well in Australia and will surely strengthen the ODI squad against South Africa. Both of them are great ambassadors for world and Indian Cricket.

"When they'll be in the side then the atmosphere will be different, Rishabh Pant is also back after a while so it will be fun to watch the ODI series."

The Indian Softball Cricket League (ISCL) will feature 32 teams.

Reflecting on the significance of softball cricket, Raina said the format plays an important role in shaping young players.

"Softball cricket has its own set of challenges, we used to play it before we made it big as professionals. This league will provide youngsters a platform to showcase their talent and dream big," he said.

He added that several top cricketers had their roots in the softball format.

"Players like Jasprit Bumrah, Lakshmipathy Balaji are some examples who started with Softball cricket and made it big. This is a different kind of challenge for the players, the batters have to deal with bounce and different variations," he said.

(With PTI Inputs)