India have criticised the “arrogant” Oval groundsman after head coach Gautam Gambhir was involved in a heated altercation ahead of the final Test of the summer.
Gambhir shouted “you can’t tell us what to do” at the Surrey’s Lee Fortis as tensions continued to flare during India’s Test series against England.
Sitanshu Kotak, India’s batting coach, accused Fortis, Surrey’s head of ground staff, of being “a bit arrogant” and shouting at India’s support staff
Fortis subsequently threatened to lodge a complaint against Gambhir. In response, Gambhir reportedly shouted back: “You can go and report to whoever you want, but you can’t tell us what to do.”
Telegraph Sport understands that the altercation was essentially about respecting the square at The Oval. Fortis, who has won groundsman of the year for the past three seasons, has had an intensive workload this summer, with the Oval hosting around 60 days of live cricket.
Fortis is believed to have asked Gambhir to ensure that none of India’s players or coaches – including Gambhir himself – encroached upon the area, or any of the squad’s kit. (Telegraph)
India head coach Gautam Gambhir was involved in a heated altercation with Surrey groundsman Lee Fortis at The Oval pic.twitter.com/6qBYaBSdkD
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