RCB defeated LSG by 18 runs in a low-scoring game, but what made more news than RCB’s win is the altercation between Kohli and Gambhir, which reminded of their long-standing animosity that first showed up on the field in 2013, when Gambhir was also an active player, leading the Kolkata Knight Riders.
The former India captain Kohli shared a story on Instagram and made an indicative comment following his spat with Gambhir, possibly calling the reactions to the incident as “opinion” and “perspective” instead of “fact” and “truth.
“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth,” posted Virat Kohli in his Instagram story.
The incident on Monday took place while the players were shaking hands at the completion of the match, when some words were seemingly exchanged between Lucknow bowler Naveen-ul-Haq and Kohli. At this point, Gambhir stepped in to control things, but it soon turned into a Kohli vs Gambhir affair when the latter charged back at the ex-RCB captain.
Kohli, Gambhir and Naveen were then fined for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct.
The Lucknow players then tried to pull Gambhir away, but when the two former India teammates got within touching distance of each other, Kohli looked to be trying to douse the fire with some calm words, but it failed to pacify Gambhir, which is when LSG leg-spinner Amit Mishra stepped in trying to control things.
The roots of this latest altercation can possibly be found in this game itself that saw Kohli being quite animated during his team’s bowling stint.
RCB went on to defend 126, but en route to their 18-run victory, Kohli made a ‘silence’ gesture towards the crowd after taking a catch that sent Krunal Pandya back early in the run-chase.
It followed an argument between Kohli and Naveen later during the 17th over of LSG innings, which required intervention by the on-field umpires and Mishra.
(AI image)
