A heated verbal clash between former Indian batter Gautam Gambhir and fast-bowler S Sreesanth was witnessed at the Lalabhai Contractor Stadium in Surat on Wednesday. After the video of the same during a Legends League Cricket match between Indian Capitals and Gujarat Giants went viral, Sreesanth revealed that Gambhir used abusive words and called him a "fixer", evoking trauma that he and his close ones had to go through.
READ HERE | ‘Gambhir called me fixer’, charges fast bowler Sreesanth
For the unversed, Kerala pacer Sreesanth was handed a life ban by the BCCI's disciplinary committee due to his alleged involvement in the IPL 2013 spot-fixing scandal. However, the ban was reduced to seven years in 2019 by the Supreme Court of India.
The fans did not appreciate Gambhir’s blow-up either. But, this is not the first time the World Cup-winning opener, made news for the wrong reasons. Gambhir, who is a Member of Parliament, has had a series of on-field verbal fights with several other players in the past as well. Here are a few such instances from the left-hander's eventful career.
1. LSG's Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli
During IPL 2023, Gambhir had a heated verbal exchange with Royal Challengers Bangalore's Virat Kohli. Gautam Gambhir, despite being the mentor of the Lucknow Super Giants expressed his rage against Kohli through strong words and body language. The incident, in a way, was a rewatch for the IPL fanbase.
2. KKR's Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli
The Delhi duo also had a face-off during an IPL match in 2013 as well. Kohli, the then skipper of RCB, was triggered when his KKR counterpart Gambhir aggressively celebrated his wicket. While walking back to the pavilion, Kohli engaged Gambhir and the duo were separated by players from both sides.
3. Shahid Afridi
In 2007, during an ODI match at Kanpur, Gambhir collided with iconic Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi. This incident resulted in a verbal exchange between the two players. The Indian crowd enthusiastically joined Gambhir before the umpire intervened to calm the situation down.
4. Shane Watson
During the 2008 Border-Gavaskar series, the Australian team tried to provoke Gautam Gambhir and Shane Watson went a little far with sledging. After Watson stuck his elbow at Gambhir while running, Gambhir responded by forcing his elbow onto Watson’s chest.
5. Kamran Akmal
Another infamous on-field argument was between Kamran Akmal and Gambhir during Asia Cup 2010 at Dambulla. They got at loggerheads and exchanged a few words. The umpires and MS Dhoni, at the non-striking end, had to intervene to prevent the situation from escalating.