Matthew Hayden urges Gambhir to watch his words after Oval curator clash
The incident between Gambhir and Fortis take place during India’s optional training session ahead of fifth Test
Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden on Friday suggested that India head coach Gautam Gambhir could have chosen his words more carefully during his heated exchange with The Oval curator Lee Fortis ahead of the fifth Test against England.
Speaking on the YouTube podcast, Hayden recalled his own experiences with protective pitch curators and sympathised with Gambhir’s frustration.
“I used to sit in the middle and meditate. Often, someone would come up and tell me to move. Curators can get pretty protective around the surface, especially in England.
"This was a bit of a flex , final Test match, their venue, and they try to make it difficult for Gautam Gambhir,” Hayden said.
While backing Gambhir’s right to defend his team’s preparation time, Hayden acknowledged that the India coach’s choice of words could have been better.
“He’s got every right, but he could have toned it down. The reality is, his team was preparing for the most important Test match,” Hayden concluded.
Last week of July, Gambhir engaged in a verbal spat with Lee Fortis, the head curator of The Oval.
The incident took place during India’s optional training session at the venue when the support staff arrived before the players to inspect the pitch and Gambhir, accompanied by assistant coaches, joined them later.
Fortis was displeased with the Indian players for using most of the main square for training and was concerned about them getting too close to the pitch.
As a result, Fortis was speaking with India’s assistant coach Sitanshu Kotak when Gambhir intervened. The groundsman was later heard telling Gambhir not to swear and warned him that he would file a complaint with the match referee.
Fortis cautioned Gambhir again, who responded by repeatedly telling him that he was ‘just a groundsman’ while pointing a finger at him.
The disagreement began when the curator instructed the Indian coaching staff to stay at least 2.5 metres away from the main pitch square, even though they were wearing joggers or rubber-spiked shoes.
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