'Aussies would've shown him his place': Dilip Vengsarkar attacks Oval curator for fight with Gautam Gambhir

Former India National Cricket Team skipper Dilip Vengsarkar has ripped into Lee Fortis, the Surrey head groundsman and chief curator, for his spat with head coach Gautam Gambhir.

Dilip Vengsarkar said that the former Australian players would have used some ugly words to show him his place if he had tried to pick a fight with them.

What happened between Lee Fortis and Gautam Gambhir?

Lee Fortis and Gautam Gambhir engaged in a heated verbal spat a couple of days before the commencement of the fifth and final Test match between India and England at the Kennington Oval in London.

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It all started when chief curator Lee Fortis issued a warning to the Indian support staff to stay at least 2.5 metres away from the pitch while they were inspecting without wearing spikes.

Fortis was reportedly concerned by the heavy footfall as well as the presence of training gear on the main square, but the way he talked and poked Indians constantly made Gautam Gambhir angry.

India head coach Gambhir instantly fired back at Fortis and told him not to tell them what to do and doubled down on his bashing, saying, "You're just a groundsman, you stay in your capacity. You are just a groundsman, nothing beyond," despite the curator warning Gambhir about filing an official complaint against him.

As the head coach of the Indian team, Gambhir had every right to see the pitch - Dilip Vengsarkar

In a recent interaction, Dilip Vengsarkar said that Gautam Gambhir had the right to look at the pitch from close quarters before the all-important match against England at the Kennington Oval in London, and he wasn't on the wrong side of things in a heated spat with Lee Fortis.

Dilip Vengsarkar also didn't agree with the Australia legend Matthew Hayden, who said that even though Gambhir was not guilty in the heated altercation, he could have 'used better language and toned it down'.

"As the head coach of the Indian team, Gambhir had every right to see the pitch from close quarters. When teams tour India, their entire team-and not just the coach and captain, examine the pitch minutely. Even their media inspect the pitch before the match. No one tells them anything. So, how are the rules different when we are playing in England?

“Would Hayden, or any of the Aussie cricketers, take it well if a curator had asked them to stay away from the square ahead of an important match. If this had happened to the Aussies, they would have used the choices of words to show the curator his place," Vengsarkar said as quoted by Times of India (TOI).

Also Read: "Would’ve convinced Mukesh Ambani…": Dilip Vengsarkar feels Jasprit Bumrah should've ditched IPL 2025 for England tour

Dilip Vengsarkar hails good pitches for India-England series

Dilip Vengsarkar was also impressed with the pitches prepared for the five-match Test series between India and England. He said that the dishing out of sporting pitches will help Test cricket to flourish and advised BCCI to do the same in the upcoming home season, instead of preparing rank turners.

"This shows that if you dish out good pitches, Test cricket can not just survive, but flourish too,” he stated.

“I hope that India do the same in their upcoming international season (two Tests each against West Indies and South Africa) and provide good, sporting wickets for Tests. The BCCI must not pander to the wishes of the short-sightedness of captains and coaches, who are just looking for short-term gains by winning matches and qualifying for the World Test Championship final," Vengsarkar said.