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Former India cricketer Manoj Tiwary has been making headlines for scathing attacks on head coach Gautam Gambhir following the loss in Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Tiwary clarified why he went on to call Gambhir a "hypocrite". He recalled his former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain's comments when he was one of the cricket experts and questioned the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for hiring overseas coaches.
"Why did I call him a hypocrite? It is because of one of his interviews if you remember. In one of the interviews, he said, 'All these foreign coaches, all the guys who come from abroad, have no emotions, they have no feelings. They earn money and enjoy themselves.' When the time was there for him to select all the Indian coaches and all the Indian-origin support staff, why did he put forward the names of Ryan ten Doeschate and Morne Morkel? He got everything he wanted but he is not able to produce the results. Actions don't match his words, so I called him a hypocrite," said Tiwary in a conversation with Hindustan Times.
Gambhir got the desired coaching staff but is yet to produce consistent good results for India. So far, under his tenure, India have lost an ODI series against Sri Lanka, whitewash in home series against New Zealand and failed to retain Border Gavaskar Trophy after a decade.
The former Bengal captain questioned Gambhir's appointment as head coach given his lack of coaching experience barring the Indian Premier League (IPL) trophy win as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) mentor last season.
"You tell me, before taking up coaching in the Indian team, did he have any coaching experience in first-class cricket or IPL or anywhere in the world? Did he coach any one of the teams? Mentoring and coaching are totally different. That is where everyone mixes up. That is where fans mix up, and a lot of others mix up. Coaching and mentoring are totally opposite. When you don't have experience, how do you expect to perform? That is what is happening right now, and the results are there for everyone to see," said the 39-year-old who has played 12 ODIs and three T20Is.
Gambhir's next assignment is at home as India take on England in five T20Is followed by three ODIs. Then, India will play the ICC Champions Trophy, their first ICC tournament under the former Indian opener.
