Gautam Gambhir breaks silence on his relationship with Virat Kohli

Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli. There have been numerous instances when these two have clashed on the cricket field and fans have seen some ugly exchanges between the two.

But starting the ODI series in Sri Lanka, Gambhir and Virat, two former India teammates and Delhi lads will share the same dressing room.

Though both buried their differences during IPL 2024 when KKR mentor Gambhir came up to RCB batter Kohli and the two players shared a hug, fans and some experts are still unsure if this partnership will work out without fireworks.

However, the new Indian Cricket Team head coach put those questions to rest ahead of India's departure for the Sri Lanka tour.

"Good for the TRP. But my relationship with Virat Kohli is not public. What kind of a relationship I share with Virat Kohli is between 2 mature individuals. On the field, everyone has the right to fight for their own team, for their own jersey and want to come back in a winning dressing room. But at the moment we are representing India and 140 crore Indians. And I'm sure we got to be on the same page and make India proud."

"I share every good relationship with Virat off the field and we will continue to do that. Making India proud is our job. He is a thorough professional, he is a world-class athlete and a world-class player, I have always said that. I have huge respect for him as a player and it's going to continue that way. Hopefully, we can work together really well," Gambhir stated.

There were also speculations about Virat and Rohit Sharma's future with the Indian team after the two senior cricketers announced their retirement from the shortest format.

GG made it clear that both of them are very much in the plans going forward.

"They have shown what they can deliver at the big stage. Whether it is the T20 World Cup or the ODI World Cup. I think both of them have a lot more cricket left in them. We’ve got the Champions Trophy, a tour of Australia, so they will be motivated. If they keep their fitness then even the 2027 World Cup. To answer how much cricket is left in them is difficult. Any team that has players of their class would love to have them for as long as possible," Gambhir said in the press conference.

When asked what he made of the workload management of Rohit and Kohli, as well as pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, Gambhir stated that while the batters ideally should play all formats, pacers need to be used judiciously.

"I’ve said it before, workload management for someone like Jasprit (Bumrah) is important. He is one rare bowler, that anyone would want. You want him to play important games. That’s why the workload management for not just him but fast bowlers is important."

"If you are a batter, who’s batting well, you might as well just play all formats. Rohit and Virat have retired from T20Is now, so they will play two formats from now. Hopefully, they are available for most of the games,” he added.