‘Gambhir won two World Cups but most will forget that…’: Tiwary wants ‘BCCI to step in’ after Kohli saga

Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir have received a lot of flak from various quarters for their on-field fracas in an IPL 2023 match between Lucknow Super Giants and Royal Challengers Bangalore.

The two nearly came to blows after RCB beat LSG in a low-scoring match at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. The exact reason for the face-off cannot be pinpointed with certainty but several reports indicated that it was due to Kohli’s aggressive celebrations and words throughout the LSG chase. The not-so-cordial history between Gambhir and Kohli also might have played a big role in it.

The BCCI took strict action and docked the full match fees of both Kohli and Gambhir for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct. The likes of Sunil Gavaskar and Virender Sehwag believed it was not enough and that the duo should have been suspended to set an example.

Veteran India cricketer Manoj Tiwary also spoke along similar lines, asking the BCCI to play a bigger role by identifying the root cause of the brawl.

“BCCI should step in. This is not a pleasant sight, especially when you are an ambassador of the game, you shouldn’t do such things. IPL is one of the most popular tournaments in the world, a lot of people watch it, especially youngsters. A lot of young people want to become like Virat Kohli. So, it is important to find the root cause of clashes like these. Healthy competition is good for the sport but not incidents like these,” Tiwary said on Cricbuzz.

Tiwary also pointed out that people might forget that a player like Gambhir was one of the major reasons for India’s last two World Cup wins – 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 OD World Cup – and remember the left-hander for his aggressive on-field tussles. Notably, Gambhir was India’s highest score in the 2007 T20 World Cup and the top run-getter in the final of the 2011 World Cup against Sri Lanka.

“This cannot go on. These two are icons as I had said earlier. When icons quit cricket, people want to remember them for what they have done on the field rather than other things. People mostly will remember Gambhir for his aggression, that will be the first thing that will come to their mind. They will forget that he has played a major role in India winning two World Cups. This should not happen. This is not the right example to set,” Tiwary, who shared the dressing room with Gambhir while playing for KKR, said.

This was not the first time Gambhir and Kohli had a public fallout. It started in 2013 when the two charged at each other during an IPL match. Gambhir was the KKR captain then while Kohli was the leader of RCB. A similar situation was repeated in 2016.

It is not as if the two have had differences only with each other only. Gambhir has heated exchanges with Kamran Akmal, Shahid Afridi, and Shane Watson during his international career. Kohli too is known for his ultra-aggressive nature, especially while fielding. He has had many on-field sledging episodes from cricketers across the globe.