'Our relation is...': Gautam Gambhir opens up on alleged rift with Virat Kohli

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) mentor Gautam Gambhir has commented on the alleged rift with Virat Kohli, saying it wasn't their duty to change the perception of how people viewed the relationship of former Indian teammates.

Despite the rumours about their frosty relationship, the duo shared a heartwarming moment during the just-concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) season. After the KKR vs RCB match at Eden Gardens, the duo shared a warm embrace and talked animatedly.

"The perception is far away from the reality. My relation with Virat Kohli is something this country doesn't need to know,"Gambhir told Sportskeeda.

"He has as much right as I do to express himself and help our respective teams win. Our relation is not to give masala to the public."

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'People are disappointed'

Last month, Kohli also revealed that he had buried the hatchet with Gambhir as well as Afghanistan pace bowler Naveen-ul-Haq, much to the dismay of people who liked to sensationalise everything.

"People are very disappointed with my behaviour. I hugged Naveen, and then the other day, Gauti bhai (Gautam Gambhir) came and hugged me. Your masala is over so you're booing. We're not kids anymore," said Kohli.

Notably, in last year's IPL, Naveen and Kohli had exchanged some words in the middle which angered Gambhir who sided with his then Lucknow Super Giants team member, leading to players from both camps coming out to separate the former Indian teammates.

After the spat, the three cricketers were handed heavy fines. Kohli and Gambhir were fined 100 per cent of their match fees while Naveen had to forego 50 per cent of his match fee. IPL also released a statement conveying that Kohli and Gambhir confessed to having committed a Level 2 offence.

Kohli and Gambhir being back on good terms augurs well for Indian cricket as reports indicate that BCCI was seriously considering KKR mentor to replace RahulDravid as the head coach.

BCCI secretary Jay Shah has seemingly held a discussion with Gambhir regarding the job with thelatter keen to get on board to end India's ICC trophy drought of more than a decade.

(With inputs from agencies)