'They would've spoken 10 times today' - Sitanshu Kotak dismisses rumours of Kohli-Gambhir rift
The batting coach also spoke about his own interaction with Kohli ahead of the ODI series, revealing that the former India captain had approached him with a few technical queries.
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India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak has firmly dismissed speculation surrounding an alleged rift between senior batter Virat Kohli and head coach Gautam Gambhir following India's defeat in the second ODI against England in Cardiff on Thursday, July 16.
Rumours of a strained relationship between the two have resurfaced in recent weeks, but Kotak categorically rejected the claims during the post-match press conference, insisting there was no communication gap between Kohli and Gambhir.
"No (laughs), Virat and Gautam would've spoken about 10 times today. I don't think that needs any bridge," Kotak said.
The batting coach also spoke about his own interaction with Kohli ahead of the ODI series, revealing that the former India captain had approached him with a few technical queries during the practice session at Edgbaston.
"Basically before he went out to bat, he spoke a few things to me. Honestly as a batting coach, unless he feels something or spots something major, his batting shouldn't be disturbed and he shouldn't be told much. But he asked me certain things before regarding his footwork and after the nets, he was talking [to me]."
Kotak further brushed aside the rumours, suggesting there was little substance behind the reports linking Kohli and Gambhir to any off-field issues.
"Apart from that, I don't know where the rumours come from, but they do," he added.
Kotak also revealed that Kohli relayed important information about the Cardiff surface to the dressing room while he was at the crease. According to the batting coach, the experienced batter informed the support staff that the pitch was offering variable bounce, making strokeplay difficult.
"When there is a double pace or double bounce, it is more about a batter adapting there. While he [Kohli] was batting only, he sent a message to us and told the head coach also that the short balls are not going through. So that, we knew [on how the pitch was behaving]," he continued.
Kohli scored a fluent 65 and shared a crucial partnership with Shreyas Iyer, who top-scored with 66, as India looked set for a commanding total at 178/3. However, the visitors suffered a dramatic collapse, losing four wickets for just 15 runs before eventually being bowled out for 233.
Reflecting on the innings, Kotak felt India fell at least 40-50 runs short of a competitive score.
"Second half, [the] wicket maybe got a little slower and Joe Root just stayed on the wicket. But I think 233, so five-and-a-half an over, if one batter gets a hundred, I don't think it's a big score to chase. If we would have got Root out, yes, it would have been interesting," Kotak concluded.
Batting coach backs out-of-form Rohit ahead of Lord's ODI
England chased down the 234-run target with four wickets in hand, courtesy of Joe Root's unbeaten century, to level the three-match ODI series 1-1. The two sides will now face off in the series-deciding third ODI at Lord's on Sunday, July 19.
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