Virat Kohli Walks Past Gautam Gambhir After Nets Session, Rohit Sharma Then Does This

The Virat Kohli versus Gautam Gambhir drama in Indian cricket simply seems to have no end, even as the team prepares for the second One-Day International (ODI) against South Africa in Raipur. Ahead of Wednesday's clash, the stalwarts, Kohli and Rohit Sharma, appeared oblivious to the constant chatter regarding the dressing room atmosphere. The two veterans went about their intense net session in tandem against throw-down specialists on Tuesday. Head Coach Gautam Gambhir, whose relationship with the two senior players has been the talk of the town for the last few days, was a close observer of the proceedings.
In fact, senior men's national selector Pragyan Ojha was reportedly sent to Raipur to mediate between Gambhir and Kohli as the dressing room atmosphere had turned cold.
As his training session concluded, Kohli slung both bats onto his shoulders and walked past Gambhir without uttering a word, a PTI report claimed. For those following the developments in Indian cricket, it was a moment open to interpretation. Rohit, who followed Kohli into the change room shortly after, did stop for a while to speak with Gambhir.
Since the start of the ODI series, several visuals have surfaced on social media, suggesting Gambhir and Kohli are not exactly on talking terms at the moment. While things were expected to improve after Kohli confirmed his availability for the forthcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy tournament, it now seems that more efforts will be required to repair what is broken between the two.
Kohli and Rohit Remain Focused
Intrigue surrounding the future of Kohli and Rohit has been steadily rising, bringing the 2027 ICC ODI World Cup into the conversation. However, having anchored the team's victories in the last two ODIs against Australia and South Africa, the two seniors did not look in the mood to take their foot off the pedal.
Kohli appeared in prime touch as he went hard against the throw-down specialists Raghu (right-arm) and Nuwan Seneviratne (left-arm), who cranked up the pace.
It was a captivating phase under lights; Kohli middled most of the deliveries, though he was occasionally beaten by the raw pace generated by Raghu.
While Kohli and Rohit were undoubtedly the main attraction, the action was no less intense in the adjacent nets, where other Indian players sweated it out ahead of the ODI. India will be looking to win this match and seal the series.
The hosts are sitting on a 1-0 lead in the three-match series after their win at Ranchi on Sunday.
The mood among the other batters was to go hard and be as aggressive as possible. The contest on the black soil pitch at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh Stadium could become another high-scoring bat-off between the two teams.
Yashasvi Jaiswal's strokes on the leg side landed into the stands, and the young opener even rolled over his arm to Rishabh Pant, who was the last Indian batter to hit the nets.
(With PTI Inputs)