'Selfless' Gambhir finds support from India and KKR cricketers after being labelled 'hypocrite'

A new social media war has broken out between Indian cricketers after former batter Manoj Tiwary labelled Indian cricket team head coach Gautam Gambhir a “hypocrite” for not walking the talk. After Tiwary’s scathing criticism, Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) former captain Nitish Rana and Harshit Rana threw their weight behind the former India opener and spoke highly about his “selfless” nature.

‘Gautam Gambhir is a hypocrite’: Tiwary

Gambhir has been in the firing line ever since India lost the Border-Gavaskar series 3-1 in Australia . As India failed to reach the World Test Championship (WTC) final for the first time, Manoj Tiwary questioned Gambhir’s coaching and his support staff who he said are just yes-men.

“Gautam Gambhir is a hypocrite. He doesn’t do what he says,” Manoj Tiwary told News18 Bangla. “What is the use of a bowling coach? Whatever the coach says, he will agree. Morne Morkel came from Lucknow Super Giants. Abhishek Nayar was at Kolkata Knight Riders with Gambhir, and the Indian head coach knows that he will not go against his instructions.”

Tiwary also alleged that Gambhir hogged all the credit for winning IPL titles with KKR as a captain and mentor when other players played an equal role behind the victories.

“Gambhir didn’t guide KKR to the title single-handedly. 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 added.

Harshit and Nitish rally behind Gambhir

Soon after Tiwary’s allegations went viral, Harshit and Nitish came up with their own rebuttals, praising Gambhir for the support he offered to the other players.

“Criticising someone due to personal insecurities is not good. Gauti bhaiya (brother) is someone who thinks more for others than himself. He always backs players when they are down and puts them in the limelight when things go our way. He has shown this on multiple occasions. He has a lot of knowledge on how to turn games in your favour,” the 23-year-old India pacer Harshit wrote on Instagram.

The 31-year-old batter Nitish, who won IPL in 2024 with Harshit at KKR, said trophies won by Gambhir speak for themselves.

“Criticism should be based on facts not personal insecurities. Gauti bhaiyya is one of the most selfless players I’ve ever met. He shoulders responsibility in times of distress like no other. Performance doesn’t need any PR. The trophies speak for themselves,” he wrote on X.

Despite their first BGT loss in a decade, it has been reported that the BCCI is not planning to take any immediate action against Gambhir as the focus is currently on the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025.

India’s Champions Trophy campaign starts on 20 February against Bangladesh in Dubai.