Oval pitch curator Lee Fortis has responded to the controversy involving India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir during the fifth Test, defending his actions. Fortis stated that he was unfairly portrayed as the villain simply because he was protective of the main pitch area.
Reflecting on the thrilling match, which lasted nearly five full days, he even likened the intensity of the contest to that of an IPL game. His comments came after the dramatic conclusion to the final Test, where India clinched a narrow six-run win to level the series 2-2. Speaking to PTI/NDTV, Fortis said:
“Well, I was never the villain; I was made into one. Hope you guys enjoyed the show, and the atmosphere was like the IPL. It was a great game.”
Notably, Gambhir lost his cool at Fortis after Indian coaches were told to stay 2.5 metres away from the pitch. Batting coach Sitansu Kotak later addressed the issue in a pre-match press conference (via Indian Express):
“When we went to see the pitch, we were asked by someone to keep a 2.5-metre distance. This was surprising. The Test would be in a few days, and we were wearing joggers. So it felt a bit odd.”
“We all have been on the ground enough, we have played so much cricket. Curators are possessive about the ground and the square, but they need to understand that they are speaking to highly skilled and intelligent people,” Kotak added.
Harry Brook questions Gambhir’s Player of the Series pick
England batter Harry Brook disagreed with India coach Gautam Gambhir’s pick for Player of the Series, stating that Joe Root was more deserving of the award. The 26-year-old shared his opinion in an interview with Hindustan Times.
“I didn’t score as many runs as Rooty (Joe Root), so I probably think he should be Man of the Series or Man of the Summer. He has been for many years.”
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