The Oval Pitch curator has once again defended himself over a controversy involving India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir in the fifth Test match. Fortis claims he was showcased a villain for being possessive about the main square. He also went on to compare the riveting Test to the IPL after the game lasted nearly five days.
His remarks came as the final Test between the two teams had a blockbuster finish, with India emerging victorious by six runs to level the series 2-2.
Lee Fortis Comments on the Controversy
Speaking to NDTV after the Test was over, Fortis said, ” Well, I was never the villain; I was made into one. Hope you guys enjoyed the show, and the atmosphere was like the IPL. It was a great game.”
Notably, Gambhir lost his composure at Fortis, after the Indian coaches were instructed to maintain a 2.5 metre distance from the playing surface. Speaking about the same, India’s batting coach Sitanshu Kotak had said in a pre-match conference on Indian Express:
“When we went to see the pitch, we were asked by someone to keep a 2.5 metre distance. This was surprising. The Test would be in a few days, and we were wearing joggers. So it felt a bit odd. We all have been on the ground enough, we played so much cricket. Curators are possessive about the ground and square, but they need to understand that they are speaking to highly skilled and intelligent people.”
Harry Brook Criticises Gautam Gambhir for getting the Player of the Series Award
England batter Harry Brook targeted Gautam Gambhir and felt that Joe Root should have named the Player of the Series as he expressed his dissent over Gautam Gambhir’s choice. The 26-year-old spoke to Hindustan Times and said: “I didn’t score as many runs as Rooty, so I probably think he should be Man of the Series or Man of the Summer. He has been for many years.”
Just to note that World Number One Test batter Joe Root amassed 537 runs in nine innings at an average of 67.12 comprising three centuries. On the other hand, Brook scored 481 runs in nine innings, averaging 53.44 hitting two centuries and two fifties.
Meanwhile, England’s head coach Brendon McCullum picked India captain Shubman Gill as his Player of the Series. The 25-year-old emerged as the leading run-getter with 754 runs in 10 innings, including a double century and three tons.
Gautam Gambhir: A Controversial Figure in Indian Cricket
Gautam Gambhir is a controversial figure in Indian cricket meant to lose his cool. We have seen that in the IPL when it was with Virat Kohli and many others in the past. He has held strong views and targeted legends in the past. Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar has been targeted by Gambhir. Even MS Dhoni World Cup winning captain was targeted as Gautam famously said, “One six didn’t win the World Cup” and repeated it for 12-13 years after that triumph in 2011.
What happened with the curator was unfortunate and Fortis was at fault for sure. But for Gambhir to lose his cool and confront the way he did was not justified at all. Hopefully, as things go along he cools down a bit and does not be so arrogant that he shows himself. He has had a history of meltdown and now needs to keep his cool in order to succeed at the world stage especially now that he is the coach as he is representing BCCI and a billion people.
Let’s hope the controversy that Gautam Gambhir tends to get associated with clears and he can focus on job in hand and that is to guide the Indian team forward through this challenging phase. The team is there, he needs to take the right decisions.
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