Manoj Tiwary and Gautam Gambhir’s long-running animosity has erupted once more.
Tiwary has called the current India head coach a “hypocrite” for his stance on playing Pakistan, almost ten years after their brutal on-field altercation during the Ranji Trophy.
Tiwary questioned Gambhir’s stance on India playing Pakistan in international events, particularly in light of Operation Sindoor and the Pahalgam terror assault, in an interview with CrickTracker.
”I always felt that he’s someone who is a hypocrite. He’s a hypocrite because he’s the one who said that India, when he was not the coach of Team India, said that India and Pakistan should never play a match between them. What will he do now? He’s the coach of the team that’s going to play Pakistan in the Asia Cup, ” Tiwary told CrickTracker.
Their tense relationship traces back to a Ranji Trophy clash between Delhi and Bengal at Feroz Shah Kotla in October 2015, where a confrontation nearly escalated into a physical altercation.
Tiwary had then accused Gambhir of using ‘racist’ language while referring to Bengalis and Sourav Ganguly.
”He made racist remarks about Sourav Ganguly and Bengalis. I spoke to Sourav Ganguly and he is very upset that his name has been dragged in the matter. We will never accept anything against Sourav Ganguly,” Tiwary had said at the time.
Gambhir had vehemently refuted the accusations, claiming that video evidence showed Tiwary pushing Delhi bowler Pradeep Sangwan and that he had never abused Tiwary or pushed the umpire.
”At no point did I threaten or push any on-field umpires. Nor did I threaten to beat Manoj up,” Gambhir had said in a statement.
One of the most repulsive domestic events of that season was the Delhi-Bengal match in 2015, which was officiated by Umpire K Srikanth and Match Referee Valmick Buch. It solidified the rivalry between the two players.
Nearly ten years later, the conflict between Tiwary, a West Bengal minister and current Trinamool Congress MLA, and Gambhir, a former Delhi MP for the Bharatiya Janata Party, has returned. This time, Tiwary has accused India’s head coach of betraying his declared convictions in the lead-up to the high-stakes Asia Cup, where India and Pakistan will play on September 14 in Dubai, with potential follow-up matches in the Super 4 and final.
