Kohli and Gambhir spat shows how IPL turns friends into foes

Welcome to the new breed of Indian cricketers, where the phrase ‘cut-throat competition’ has practically come to life with cricketers having a go at one another on the field. Two Indian team mates-turned-foes in the Indian Premier League, Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli were engaged in a heated spat as words were exchanged between the duo after the dismissal of Virat Kohli. Both these players represent the same domestic side, Delhi, in the Ranji trophy. Welcome to the Indian Premier League, where friends turn into enemies on the pitch.

The two players, who are also skippers of their respective IPL teams, should have led from the front, but they set a bad example for a number of youngsters present in their squad. In fact, it’s difficult to say who crossed the line , or who was the first person to attack the other with his words, but from whatever TV coverage was offered to the viewers, Virat Kohli seems to be the offender. Before things could get any worse, it was another Delhi lad, Rajat Bhatia, who came to the forefront and separated the players.

But it is worth mentioning that Gautam Gambhir was in an aggressive mood right from the time he walked into bat in the first innings, where he took the attack to Moises Henriques, playing attacking shots and staring back at him every now and then, with some harsh words being spoken. Is this the reason Virat Kohli hit back at him after his dismissal?

The Delhi players are known for their aggressive approach on the field while they don the Indian cap as well. They have been seen sledging opponents and have never backed out when the opposition players have hit back at them as well. The same happened in the heat of the moment after Kohli’s dismissal. Gautam Gambhir has been involved in  several incidents in the past, which includes his verbal spat with Kamran Akmal, and Virat Kohli has had his own share of controversies, including one when he showed his middle finger to the fans down under.

But this is not the first time such a spat has broken out in the IPL. Remember the famous Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth slapgate? Last year, an altercation was witnessed between Amit Mishra and Munaf Patel as well during an IPL match. Earlier this season, there were words exchanged between Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard. These spats clearly establish how seriously this competition is taken by cricketers, but sometimes things go off the boil. This is something which should not happen.