Amid BCCI Scrutiny, 'Strict' Gambhir Had Rift With Support Staff During BGT

Gautam Gambhir’s stint as Team India’s head coach has not been a bed of roses, and neither has seemingly been his equation with his support staff. With Gambhir and his support staff – particularly Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate – under scrutiny from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), a report has revealed a dressing room dispute. The report states that bowling coach Morne Morkel was reprimanded by Gautam Gambhir during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy tour for arriving late to training.

As per the report by the Times of India, Morkel had reported late to training due to a personal meeting, but was reprimanded by Gambhir at the ground itself.

The report says that Morkel had been rather reserved during the crucial five-match Test tour, and that the onus is on the duo to sort the issue out and ensure it does not hamper the team.

“Gambhir is very strict about discipline. He reprimanded Morkel immediately at the ground. The board has been told that Morkel was a bit reserved during the tour. It’s up to these two to sort it out for the team to function smoothly,” a BCCI source reportedly told the newspaper.

Gambhir’s assistant coaches Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate are already being scrutinised by the BCCI, with the importance of their roles reportedly being questioned. The incident with Morkel does no good to the perceived harmony between Gambhir, his support staff and the team.

Earlier, it had also been reported that Gambhir and his support staff have a much more objective manner of communication towards players in the team, who had grown accustomed to the more empathetic style from the Rahul Dravid era.

It is important to note that Gambhir had himself singled out Morkel as the bowling coach for the team, having labelled him as the “fiercest bowler” he had faced during his playing career.

Gambhir also brought in Morkel as the bowling coach during the former’s time at Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), and the duo achieved two Indian Premier League (IPL) play-off finishes in their two years together.

Morkel and Gambhir’s relationship also stretches back to over a decade ago, with Morkel being bought by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) under Gambhir’s leadership ahead of IPL 2014, when the two won a title together.