ENG vs IND, 5th Test: Gautam Gambhir Ignores Oval Curator Lee Fortis Following Heated Spat (WATCH)

India's head coach Gautam Gambhir and Oval's pitch curator Lee Fortis had a heated exchange during India's net session. A day later, Gambhir seemingly ignored Fortis on the pitch, adding to the drama surrounding the final Test.

Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir has seemingly ignored the Oval pitch curator Lee Fortis, following their heated exchange ahead of the fifth and final Test of the ongoing series against England.

Before the series decider of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025, tensions had already started to flare when Gambhir was involved in a fiery verbal altercation with Lee Fortis during the visitors’ nets session. According to India's batting coach, Sitanshu Kotak, Fortis rudely asked Gambhir to stay ‘2.5 metres’ away from the pitch, which triggered an angry reaction from the former India opener, who felt the manner and tone were unnecessary.

Gambhir reportedly told Lee Fortis, ‘You don’t tell us what to do. You’re just a groundsman; stay in your capacity,’ further escalating the altercation between the two.

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The Oval Staff threatened to file a complaint against Gautam Gambhir, but there has been no official confirmation from the England and Wales Cricket Board or Surrey Cricket about whether any formal action has been taken. However, the incident an unexpected layer of drama ahead of the high-stakes fifth Test.

Lee Fortis ignored by Gautam Gambhir

A day after the heated spat, Lee Fortis and Gautam Gambhir met for the second time on the eve of the Oval Test. In a video that went viral on social media, Gambhir was seen with Sitanshu Kotak, Ajit Agarkar and Shubman Gill having a serious discussion and probably assessing the pitch in order to pick the playing XI.

During the discussion, Fortis was seen walking down the pitch and approaching the trio to have a word, probably about the pitch. However, Gambhir and Gill did not pay heed to the pitch curator, and Kotak had a discussion with him. The coach, captain, and chief selector moved away and continued with their talk.

The heated confrontation between Gautam Gambhir and Lee Forris just a few days after England skipper Ben Stokes’s controversial decision to request a draw when Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar were nearing centuries. Jadeja politely declined Stokes’s request for a draw until he and Sundar completed their centuries.

In the Lord’s Test, England opener Zak Crawley and India captain Shubman Gill were involved in a heated exchange after the former was accused of deliberate time-wasting tactics, which laid the foundation for rising on-field tensions throughout the series.

No instructions on staying 2.5 metres away from the pitch

Speaking at the press conference on the eve of the Oval Test, Shubman Gill opened up on the heated spat between Gautam Gambhir and Lee Fortis. Gill stated that there have been no such instructions to stay away from the pitch, adding that he was not sure what led to the curator having an issue with Gambhir.

“As far as I remember, there's no such instruction (on staying 2.5 metres behind). As long as you're wearing rubber spikes or you're barefoot, I think you're allowed to look at the wicket closely,” Gill said.

“I don't know exactly what happened yesterday in terms of why their curator stopped them, but we’ve played four matches there before, and no one has ever stopped us.

We've all played a lot of cricket and have looked at wickets many times—whether it's the coach or the captain—so I don't know what all that fuss was about,” he added.

Meanwhile, India will look to level the series, which is currently at 2-1 in England’s favour, after an epic draw in the fourth Test at Old Trafford in Manchester.