Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) star Virat Kohli and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) mentor Gautam Gambhir have been dominating headlines following their on-field spat in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023.
It was surely not a pleasant sight to witness India’s two World Cup-winning team members almost coming to blows after the LSG-RCB game at Ekana Stadium on Monday, May 01. Not only did the incident shift the focus away from the exciting low-scoring match, but it also portrayed a negative image of the two individuals who have a history of clashing with each other in the past.
Since the Kohli and Gambhir altercation, the fans on social media haven’t stopped talking about it. The war of words between the two senior Indian cricketers has also given rise to many discussions, with many ex-cricketers weighing in on the situation.
Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar was not happy with how things panned out and lambasted both Kohli and Gambhir, who were fined their 100 per cent match fee for breaching the code of conduct and committing the level 2 offence.
Gavaskar opined that only a fine would not be enough for these cricket icons and urged for a bigger punishment so the players wouldn’t repeat such acts.
“My point, is do something which will make sure these things don’t happen again. If it has to, you know, like it happened with Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth 10 years ago, that you have to ask them to maybe step aside for a couple of matches…make sure you do something that ensures that these things don’t happen and also something that will hurt the team,” said Gavaskar while speaking on Star Sports.
“Is he going to be fined ?1 crore and more? Well, that’s a very, very stiff fine. I don’t know what Gambhir’s situation is. They should ensure that this is not repeated. You are hoping that this is not repeated because it’s such a stiff fine, such a stiff punishment,” added Gavaskar.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri reckoned that the IPL Governing Council should intervene in such matters and invite all the concerned players in one place and have a direct conversation that such incidents wouldn’t be tolerated.
“Someone from the governing council or the BCCI should take the initiative where all parties involved are called up front. And whatever has been said or whatever the history, get in there and nip it in the bud and with a stern warning, Whether it is Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, or it is Naveen-ul-Haq, whether it is somebody else. Chaar ka chaar ko lao saamne and have a direct conversation. ‘Yes, we understand things do happen in the heat of the moment. But there’s a line. And I’m afraid you guys crossed the line. So whatever you guys have to say, sort it now because it won’t be tolerated in the future,” said Shastri, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
