"Made sure they are...": Manoj Tiwary exposes Gambhir's dirty Ro-Ko scheme

Soumyajit Dutta

Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir [Source: @ghugemuks1/X.com]Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir [Source: @ghugemuks1/X.com]

After Shubman Gill took the helm as ODI captain and Rohit Sharma was sidelined from captaincy, even after a successful Champions Trophy campaign, all eyes are now on the Indian think tank and India's head coach, Gautam Gambhir.

Fans as well as experts are questioning Gambhir and Agarkar’s choice of Gill as the new ODI captain, with former India cricketer Manoj Tiwary stepping in to call out Gautam Gambhir, alleging that he is pushing senior players out of the team.

Tiwary brings up 'forced-retirement' in question

Speaking to InsideSport, Manoj Tiwary blamed the India head coach for cryptically forcing senior players to retire early, hinting at Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. He also highlighted Ashwin, who retired mid-BGT series, stating that he felt underutilized as he was benched for most matches. 

"If the senior players are there, if Ashwin is there, if Rohit is there or if Rohit is there, then these guys have played so much cricket, these guys are established much more than the head coach or the other staff, these guys will raise questions if they don't agree to a point. You just made sure that these guys are not there, basically," said Tiwary.

Manoj Tiwary further noted that Gambhir has been at the centre of controversies since his appointment as coach, while hinting at the retirements of Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli, who also retired from Test and T20I formats. 

"I have observed that since this coach took on the role, a lot of controversies have arisen. Many things that are happening are not good for Indian cricket. I believe that since the time he has been the head coach, Ashwin has taken a retirement. Rohit and Virat have also done so. Other things have happened, such as players being unexpectedly added to the squad and then being straight into the starting XI. We have seen that Gambhir has not been consistent," he added.

Tiwary backs Ro-Ko for 2027 World Cup

Concluding his statements, Manoj Tiwary suggested that it would be a poor decision if Gautam Gambhir neglects Rohit Sharma for the 2027 World Cup, given that Rohit has already been removed from captaincy.

"If these players feel that things are affecting their image and they are no longer wanted in the dressing room, then they might consider retiring. I believe they want to play. I think Gambhir won't take this big a call of not having these two individuals because, in the white-ball format, no one can deny the fact that these two have been outstanding. It would be a really poor decision if Gautam doesn't include these two in the scheme of things for the World Cup," Tiwary concluded.

Nevertheless, the Indian team, with its senior premier batters, will be heading for the Australia tour, which begins on October 19. The ODI series will see the new captain Shubman Gill leading, with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli playing under him, likely their last games on Australian soil before retirement.