Watch- Gautam Gambhir approached again by Oval Curator, Indian Head Coach unleashes fury
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Just a day before the final decisive Test match at The Oval, the Oval pitch curator once again was seen approaching the Indian camp, despite his heated altercation with the Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir just a day ago.
Gautam Gambhir, the Indian head coach known for his fierce attitude and outspoken ways, was seen engaged in a heated exchange of words with Oval pitch curator Lee Fortis. The controversy escalated so far that the Indian staff, including batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, had to step in to draw the two individuals away from each other.
After the incident, in a press release, the batting coach confirmed that it was the Pitch curator who provoked Gambhir to the extent of an outburst with some inflammatory remarks.
Curator approaches again; Gambhir ignores
After the previous altercation, the controversy between the Oval groundstaff and the Indian head coach has been the centre line of the final Test, sidelining the availability of players or the match being a decisive game, working as a decider for the fate of the first Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.
After the incident, the Curator, who had been considered guilty of infuriating the coach with several vile remarks, was once again seen approaching the Indian nets. He conversed with the staff, as Shubman Gill, Sitanshu Kotak, and Ajit Agarkar, as well as Gautam Gambhir, were all probably chalking out some game plan.
What seemed amazing from a video posted by Sandipan Banerjee on X was Gambhir's unbothered attitude as he totally ignored the presence of the big fellow and didn't have a single word for him.
Watch the Incident unfold here:
When Lee Fortis met Gautam Gambhir again…#ENGvsIND pic.twitter.com/rw9JLgqD8N
— Sandipan Banerjee (@im_sandipan) July 30, 2025
Incidents that led to Gautam Gambhir unleashing his fury on the ground staff
As per RevSportz reports, the drama unfolded ever since the Indian camp approached the Pitch curator to have an insight into what could be expected from the Oval pitch in the next 48 hours. A sarcastic remark from Fortis led to the initiation of a verbal spat between them.
He remarked he would look to grow more grass on the field to trouble the Indian batters. This was followed by Gambhir himself approaching the pitch to inspect it; however, as revealed by Sitanshu Kotak, they were asked to keep a perimeter of 2.5 m away from the pitch.
Tensions soared as Fortis also misbehaved with an Indian staff member, saying, 'you cannot walk on the ground.' As he dared Gambhir to report against him, Gambhir too replied instantly with 'You go and report whatever you want to report."
The conversations heated up as Gambhir animatedly responded, “You can't tell us what to do. You are just one of the groundsmen, nothing beyond. You don’t tell us what we need to do.”
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England skipper opens up on Gambhir's altercation with the Pitch curator
Ahead of such a decisive Test, the Indian team looks somewhat bothered by the incident that took place at the nets in the Oval; however, from the English skipper's statement as well as his attitude, it seemed they are unaffected by it.
On being questioned about his stance on Gautam Gambhir's heated exchange with the Oval pitch curator, he simply replied that he doesn't know, as he was not present there during the incident.
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India National Cricket Team England National Cricket Team India vs England Gautam Gambhir Ben Stokes Jasprit Bumrah England vs India ICC World Test Championship
