5 infamous coach-captain relationships that fell apart

#4 Gautam Gambhir and KP Bhaskar

Midway through the season, Gambhir was removed from captaincy and replaced by a very inexperienced Rishabh Pant

Away from the glare of international cricket, one such feud that made a lot of news recently within the Indian domestic circuit was that between the coach and captain of the Delhi Ranji team. The captain is none other than Gautam Gambhir, well known to speak his mind without mincing words.

The issue first came to light when media ran reports of an ugly confrontation between Gambhir and the coach KP Bhaskar. Gambhir, while denying any untoward incident, admitted he had questioned the coach for creating an insecure environment for the youngsters in the squad.

Delhi had had a poor 2016-17 season under Bhaskar, failing to make a mark in all formats. During the season, Unmukt Chand was unceremoniously dropped just after captaining the side, whereas Nitish Rana was sent home after few games.

Gambhir said on his feud with coach Bhaskar, “If protecting a youngster is a crime, I am guilty. If making 20-22-year-olds feel secure in an insecure environment is a crime, then I am guilty. But I could not have let this man (Bhaskar) play with careers of young players like Unmukt Chand and Nitish Rana.

“I know how to deal with people. Lot of things have been said about him, about how I abused this man or that man. Lot of things are blown out of proportion. For last three years, I have been trying to give security to these young players who are all 23 or 24. There has been a culture in Delhi cricket about making players insecure.

“I have myself faced that when I was a youngster. When I got into the Ranji Trophy team, I was made to feel insecure. Then only I had decided, if I ever take charge I will never make young boys feel insecure. I backed certain boys for 2-3 years as these were the best boys to back. It is irrelevant from which club they come and we need to get this culture out of the way”

A committee set up by the DDCA to enquire into the issue recently awarded a four-match ban to Gambhir, suspended till 2019.