Former Indian cricketer defends Gambhir after heated exchange with Oval groundsman

LONDON: Former India all rounder Irfan Pathan on Thursday came out in support of head coach Gautam Gambhir following a controversy involving a groundsman at The Oval ahead of the fifth Test between England and India. 

A video circulating on social media showed Gambhir in a heated exchange with Lee Fortis, a member of the ground staff, after being stopped from going near the pitch on which the upcoming match will be played.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Pathan criticised the groundsman’s behavior and defended Gambhir’s actions, insisting that the Indian coach was well within his rights to inspect the surface. 

He also accused the curator of having a history of being rude to overseas teams.

“This curator has a history of being rude. There are several instances of him behaving in such a way with captains and coaches from visiting teams. This isn’t the first time. 

"The process of Gambhir being villainised has been going on in the media for a long time now,” Pathan said.

The former Indian cricketer highlighted what he called a double standard, pointing out that images have surfaced online showing England players and head coach Brendon McCullum standing on the same pitch days before the Test, while Gambhir was denied access. 

“We end up laying the red carpet for visiting teams in India. When we go overseas, we follow the rules, and nobody should have a problem with that. There’s a photo on Twitter of the same curator standing with Brendon McCullum on the pitch two days before a match," he remarked. 

Pathan said such behavior was unacceptable and compared it to colonial era attitudes.

"Gambhir also went two days before. How can you then deny him? England’s coach is allowed, but not India’s. It feels like we are still living in the 1947 era. I cannot accept this double standard,” Pathan added.

Pathan stressed that assessing the pitch’s hardness and moisture content was critical to team selection and strategy for the match beginning July 31.

“If you don’t get to inspect the pitch, how will you plan for the game? You have to get a feel of the pitch by touching it, how hard it is and whether there’s moisture. 

"You can’t know that by staring from 2.5 meters away. This was an unnecessary controversy,” he concluded.