Kolkata Knight Riders mentor Gautam Gambhir recently opened up on his relationship with fellow Delhi cricketer Virat Kohli, who was his teammate in the Indian squad until the former's retirement.
Gambhir and Kohli have had several heated on-field arguments while facing each other during the Indian Premier League.
His infamous altercation with Kohli in IPL 2023 became one of the biggest talking points of last year. But the two mercurial personalities buried the hatchet and met like nothing ever happened between them this season when KKR faced Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL 2024.
When asked about his current relationship with Kohli, Gambhir made it clear that it's their personal choice to reveal what kind of an equation they actually share on and off the field.
"The perception is far away from the reality. My relation with Virat Kohli is something this country doesn't need to know.
"He has as much right as I do to express himself and help our respective teams win. Our relation is not to give masala to the public," Gambhir told Sportskeeda.
VK's take on 'That Hug' with GG in IPL 2024
Kohli had said something similar when he was asked about Gambhir and their hug in Bengaluru during IPL 2024.
"People are very disappointed by my behaviour. I hugged Naveen, then Gauti bhai hugged me the other day. That means the masala is over for you guys. We are not kids anymore," Kohli said at a Puma event last year.
Gambhir's KKR wins 3rd IPL title, Kohli's RCB crashes out
Gambhir made a winning return 'home' to Kolkata this season as KKR dominated their campaign to lift the IPL 2024 trophy. Gambhir thus, became the first IPL player to win the title as captain and mentor of the same team, following up on KKR's triumphs in 2012 and 2014 under his leadership.
Kohli's RCB on the other hand, staged a superb comeback in the second half of the league stage, winning 6 T20s in a row to reach the playoffs where they got knocked out by Rajasthan Royals in the Eliminator.
Notably, Gambhir's latest achievement with KKR has made him the frontrunner in the race to become Team India's next head coach after Rahul Dravid's contract expires in June. Gambhir could soon be sharing the dressing room with Kohli if he agrees to the BCCI's alleged offer.
