England, who are 2-1 up in the series ahead of the final match that starts on Thursday, decided not to train following their efforts in the drawn fourth Test at Manchester that finished on Sunday.
It was the latest flashpoint in a series that exploded into life when both teams were involved in angry exchanges during the third Test at Lord’s earlier this month.
Now more niggle has been added into the mix after Gambhir, India’s temperamental coach, clashed with Fortis during the team’s training session at The Oval on Tuesday.
VIDEO | Indian team's head coach Gautam Gambhir was seen having verbal spat with chief curator Lee Fortis at The Oval Cricket Ground in London ahead of the last Test match of the series starting Thursday. After having drawn the fourth Test at Old Trafford, India have a chance… pic.twitter.com/hfjHOg9uPf
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 29, 2025Gambhir then exploded, with The i Paper being told he complained that there was too much grass on the pitch and, in a video posted by the Press Trust of India, he is heard telling Fortis: “You can go and report to whoever you want, but you can’t tell us what to do.”
One source at Surrey told The i Paper: “We’re looking after the square. We’ve had a lot of cricket played on it this summer and we are looking after every blade of grass.
Gambhir (centre) exploded after being confronted by Fortis (Photo: Getty)Fortis was tight lipped later when grilled by Indian reporters at the ground, saying: “It’s okay, we’ve nothing to hide. I don’t want to say anything. There’s a big game coming up. You saw what he [Gambhir] was like this morning. I don’t know the man.”
Kotak later explained India’s version of events, saying: “When we were having a conversation near the pitch they had sent a man to send a message for us to stay 2.5 metres away from the pitch. We were wearing joggers.
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“People are highly skilled and intelligent. None of the bowlers were even wearing spikes. You can be protective but not arrogant. It is not an antique that you can’t touch it. He said we are trying to grow the grass. End of the day it’s a cricket pitch. We will not be lodging any complaints.”
It is understood that England, frustrated with the surfaces for the first four Tests of the series, have asked Fortis for a pitch with more pace, carry and a bit more grass on it to aid the seamers.
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