Gautam Gambhir’s ex-teammate at the Indian Team and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL, Manoj Tiwary, has come down hard on the Indian coach, saying he is a hypocrite as he doesn’t walk the talk. After India lost six of their last eight Tests, leading to their failure in qualifying for the WTC Final 2025, Tiwary bashed ‘favouritism’ inside the dressing room, adding Gambhir made BCCI hire his yes men.

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Gautam rejoined KKR as the team mentor ahead of IPL 2024, playing a handy role in helping them win their third league title last year. Though Chandrakant Pandit was the team coach that beat SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the one-sided final, Gambhir got all the limelight, leading to him entering the race for Team India’s head coach role.

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Taking jibes at his former IPL captain, Tiwary called Gautam a hypocrite, adding his choices for the backroom staff, for which he remained adamant ahead of taking up the job, led to calamity in Indian cricket. 

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“Gautam Gambhir is a hypocrite. He doesn’t do what he says. Where is the captain (Rohit) from? Mumbai. Where is Abhishek Nayar from? Mumbai. They got a chance to put a Mumbai player in the forefront. There is no one to speak for Jalaj Saxena. He performs well but keeps quiet,” Tiwary said in a chat with News18 Bangla.

“Morne Morkel came from Lucknow Super Giants. Abhishek Nayar was at Kolkata Knight Riders with Gambhir, and the Indian head coach has a comfort zone with him. They have to be yes men to the coach. That’s why they were brought,” Manoj added.

‘He didn’t do it alone’

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What goes around comes around.

All this time since playing the match-winning knock against Sri Lanka in the 2011 World Cup Final, Gautam Gambhir kept bashing the Indian fans and the media for crediting MS Dhoni, who remained unbeaten on 91 and hit the winning runs, for India lifting the trophy, and that seems to return to haunt the current team coach.

Tiwary said Gautam’s PR helped him get all the credit for KKR’s win in IPL 2024, which was not the case, as everyone helped the team get through.

“Gambhir didn’t guide KKR to the title single-handedly, as we all performed as a unit. Jacques Kallis, Sunil Narine and I - all contributed to the cause. But who took the credit? There is an environment and PR that allows him to take all the credit,” Tiwary noted.

Meanwhile, Gambhir has come under pressure following India’s loss Down Under. While his tenure thus far has been about more lows than hits, Gautam’s next assignment is England’s white-ball series against India and the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in the UAE. 

(With inputs from agencies)