Gautam Gambhir Is A 'Hypocrite': Former India Cricketer Slams Head Coach, Asks 'What Will He Do Now'

Just days before the Asia Cup 2025 kicks off, Manoj Tiwary launched a scathing attack on India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir, branding him a “hypocrite.”

India, the designated hosts, will start their Asia Cup title defence with a group stage match against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Dubai. The Group A fixtures will also feature the controversial India vs Pakistan on September 14, and clash against minnows Oman four days later.

India Vs Pakistan, Asia Cup 2025: Tiwary On Gambhir's Stand

"I always felt that he's someone who is a hypocrite," Manoj Tiwary told CrickTracker. "He's a hypocrite because he's the one who said that India, when he was not the coach of Team India, said that India and Pakistan should never play a match between them. What will he do now?

Raising the ethical concerns regarding the scheduled India vs Pakistan encounter in the wake of recent cross-border incidents, Tiwary continued: "He's the coach of the team that's going to play Pakistan in the Asia Cup. Why can't he just resign and say that I will not be part of Team India because you are playing with Pakistan?"

The Sports Ministry, earlier this month, unveiled a new policy declaring that India and Pakistan will not engage in any bilateral sporting contests, even if hosted at neutral venues. The policy, however, makes an exception for multilateral tournaments, ensuring India’s participation in next month’s Asia Cup.

The policy, uploaded on the Ministry’s official website, does spark broader debates about the impact of geopolitical tensions on sporting decisions. The Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people in May led to a military showdown with India launching Operation Sindoor.

"India's approach to sports events involving Pakistan reflects its overall policy in dealing with that country,” the ministry stated. “In so far as bilateral sports events in each other's country are concerned, Indian teams will not be participating in competitions in Pakistan. Nor will we permit Pakistani teams to play in India.”

Tiwary And Gambhir: History Of Clashes Fuels Current Criticism

Manoj Tiwary’s public criticism is underpinned by a history of personal and professional clashes with Gautam Gambhir, dating back to their overlapping tenure at Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and several incidents in domestic cricket.

Tiwary, who played 12 ODIs and three T20Is for India, has recounted heated arguments, on-field verbal tussles, and alleged threats by Gambhir during key matches, including a Ranji Trophy encounter.

For the unversed, Tiwary's rivalry with Gambhir has roots in the Indian Premier League 2013 season, when both played for KKR and reportedly clashed over batting order decisions.

In 2015, Tiwary alleged that Gambhir used abusive language during a Ranji Trophy match between Bengal and Delhi, which led to a formal complaint to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

The BCCI disciplinary committee reviewed the incident but did not issue public sanctions. In his latest interview, Tiwary said: "My relationship with him will never be good. It will never be good because I know what he has done. And a lot of things he has said which will be difficult to forget."

India's Squad For Asia Cup 2025: Tiwary Ratchets Up Criticism

Manoj Tiwary also lambasted Gambhir for the exclusion of Yashasvi Jaiswal from India's Asia Cup 2025 squad. The non-selection of players like Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer, particularly given their strong IPL 2025 record, has drawn significant backlash and debate, with former players and experts expressing surprise.

Recalling how Gambhir previously lauded Jaiswal as an all-format player indispensable to the T20 side, Tiwary remarked: "He's the one who said that Yashasvi Jaiswal is one of the players who is the future of Team India and also he's someone who will not be kept outside T20. He should not be kept outside T20. He should be given a longer run. And now, he's not there in the team."

"So, a lot of things apart from these couple of statements where he said, and he has just done the opposite," the former Bengal captain added. "So, I always felt that he's a hypocrite, and he's always been a hypocrite."

According to Ajit Agarkar, chief selector of the Indian team, Jaiswal's omission was based on squad balance and Abhishek Sharma's exceptional recent form. The selection panel argued that the reasoning was not a reflection of any shortcoming by Jaiswal, who was named as a reserve despite scoring over 2,000 Test runs and 723 runs from 23 T20Is.

The panel also echoed this rationale for Shreyas Iyer, stating that only fifteen could be chosen, and their exclusion was a matter of competition and team composition rather than merit.