Lucknow Super Giants all-rounder Krishnappa Gowtham has spoken about the details of the fight between Naveen-ul-Haq and Virat Kohli during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. He said that banter between players is an integral part of the game and both players are passionate about the game.
Virat Kohli and Naveen-ul-Haq were the hot soup of the Indian Premier League 2023. During the game between Lucknow Super Giants and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, both players were involved in a brutal clash, and it also saw the then LSG mentor Gautam Gambhir involved.
The fight between Virat Kohli and Naveen-ul-Haq started during the game when the RCB batsman was attacking the opponent. The fast bowler was also not kind to the batsman and the fight continued even during the post-match handshakes where they exchanged brutal words.
After that, they kept clashing and then saw Lucknow Super Giants mentor Gautam Gambhir taking Naveen-ul-Haq’s side. The current Indian national cricket team coach also had a spat with Virat Kohli and it became a major talking point.
Now, after two years, Krishnappa Gowtham has spoken about the dispute between Virat Kohli and Naveen-ul-Haq. He stressed that the incident happened due to the heat of the moment. He underlined that Kohli is passionate about winning, while the fast bowler is a fighter.
Gowtham also highlighted that such things happen in high-pressure matches and claimed that these were banter between two top-level sportsmen who wanted to win the match for their respective teams. Speaking to CricTracker, he explained:
“It’s part of the game. It happened because of the heat of the moment. Virat is Virat, we all know the passion he has. He wants to win, no matter what. Similarly, Naveen is a fighter. I think these kinds of jokes happen in high-pressure games.
“That’s the beauty of this sport. It allows emotions to flow. Sometimes you can control them, but sometimes you can’t. When the adrenaline is high, it is high. It was a joke and a lot of people talked about it, but it was just two top athletes competing against each other and wanting to win the match for their respective teams,” Krishnappa Gowtham said.
He is right in your face, whatever it is – Krishnappa Gowtham on Gautam Gambhir
Krishnappa Gowtham also spoke about playing with Gautam Gambhir. He said that the current coach of the Indian national cricket team knows how to get the best out of his players. He said that the former Indian captain does not sugarcoat things and is straightforward.
“GG bhai is someone who goes ahead. He tells you exactly how it is, how to prepare for high-pressure matches. He knows how to get the best out of players. The way he talks to a player, the way he motivates him… it’s a different game.
“He makes sure that everyone is comfortable. He also makes sure that what is right is right and what is wrong is wrong. He also never sugarcoats things. He is direct, whatever it is,” Krishnappa Gowtham concluded.
