Recently, Gautam Gambhir has been at the center of a heated controversy after former cricketer Manoj Tiwary made strong remarks about his leadership and public image. In the wake of these comments, several players have come forward to show their support for Gambhir, with Nitish Rana being one of the first to defend him. Following this, Harshit Rana, another member of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) squad under Gambhir's coaching in IPL 2024, also stepped up to express his support.

Read Also: Manoj Tiwary Slams Gautam Gambhir: Calls Him a Hypocrite and Questions His Leadership

Harshit, who played under Gambhir’s coaching during last year's IPL and the recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25, took to social media to back the former cricketer. He shared his thoughts by uploading an Instagram story in which he addressed the criticism, emphasizing that criticizing someone due to personal insecurities was unfair and wrong. Harshit highlighted Gambhir's selfless leadership and the support he consistently provided to his players, especially during tough times, and always gave them the limelight when things were going well.

Harshit highlighted Gambhir’s selfless leadership, noting how he always focused on the players' well-being and their success on the field. Harshit added that Gambhir consistently supported his players, especially when they were going through tough times, and always gave them the limelight when things were going well. He further expressed that Gambhir had immense knowledge of how to turn games in favor of the team, demonstrating strategic brilliance as a coach.

Nitish Rana, another former KKR player, also expressed his support for Gambhir, defending him against the criticism. He took to Twitter, suggesting that Tiwary’s comments were rooted in personal insecurities and reaffirmed Gambhir’s qualities as a selfless and effective leader. Rana highlighted Gambhir’s consistent ability to motivate and support his players, reinforcing the idea that Gambhir’s leadership was both genuine and impactful.

Criticism should be based on facts not personal insecurities. Gauti bhaiyya is one of the most selfless players I’ve ever met. He shoulders responsibility in times of distress like no other. Performance doesn’t need any PR. The trophies speak for themselves.

— Nitish Rana (@NitishRana_27) January 9, 2025

The controversy began when Manoj Tiwary criticized Gambhir for allegedly taking all the credit for KKR’s 2012 IPL win. Tiwary suggested that Gambhir’s public image overshadowed the contributions of other key players, including himself, Jacques Kallis, and Sunil Narine. He also raised concerns about Gambhir’s leadership during his coaching tenure with the Indian team. Tiwary’s comments, which gained attention after being aired in a viral interview, sparked a wave of debate in the cricketing community.

Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir is facing criticisms due to Team India’s recent struggles, especially in Test cricket. Nitish Rana came with support for Gambhir by calling him one of the most selfless players. 

After Gautam Gambhir took the head coach responsibility of the Indian national cricket team, India suffered some historic defeats. A new-looking Indian team lost a bilateral ODI series against the hosts Sri Lanka, while they lost the three-match home Test series against New Zealand by 3-0. 

Despite starting the Australia tour with a historic 295-run win in Perth, India lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 in Australia by 3-1. 

See Also: Gautam Gambhir as batter, captain, and coach: Stats and Facts

India failed to reach the Final of the 2023-2025 ICC World Test Championship

By losing both the last two Test series against New Zealand and Australia, India ultimately failed to reach the final of the third cycle of the ICC World Test Championship (2023-2025). India played the first two WTC cycle Finals, where New Zealand beat them in the first Final and Australia beat them in the second Final. 

In the recently concluded Australia tour, captain Rohit Sharma disappointed the fans and experts both as a batter and skipper. Legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar criticised the Indian coaches for the visiting batters' continuous struggles in the entire series. Till the end of the series in Australia, most of the Indian batters seemed clueless, and there were also no clarifications about the roles of the players. 

Criticism should be based on facts not personal insecurities: Nitish Rana

Nitish Rana, who was also a vice-captain of Kolkata Knight Riders, came to strong support of Gambhir. Rana got the guidance of Gambhir from his domestic cricket career for Delhi. He called the former Indian opener one of the most selfless players. 

Nitish Rana, who has played one ODI and two T20Is, wrote on his official X account, “Criticism should be based on facts not personal insecurities. Gauti bhaiyya is one of the most selfless players I’ve ever met. He shoulders responsibility in times of distress like no other. Performance doesn’t need any PR. The trophies speak for themselves.”

Criticism should be based on facts not personal insecurities. Gauti bhaiyya is one of the most selfless players I’ve ever met. He shoulders responsibility in times of distress like no other. Performance doesn’t need any PR. The trophies speak for themselves.

— Nitish Rana (@NitishRana_27) January 9, 2025

On Thursday, Kolkata Knight Riders CEO Venky Mysore confirmed that Shreyas Iyer would resume his role as captain for KKR in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, with Nitish Rana appointed as his deputy.

Iyer had missed the IPL 2023 due to injury, leading Nitish Rana to captain the team, resulting in an eighth-place finish. However, Iyer made a successful comeback during the 2023 Asia Cup in September-October and contributed to India’s journey to the 2023 World Cup final last month.

Expressing his excitement, Venky stated, “It was unfortunate that Shreyas missed IPL 2023 due to injury. We are delighted to have him back as Captain. His recovery and remarkable form showcase his character.”

The announcement also confirmed the return of Gautam Gambhir as a mentor to the franchise. Gambhir, who led KKR to two IPL titles in 2012 and 2014, rejoined as a mentor last month. Having served as a mentor for the Lucknow Super Giants in 2022 and 2023 after his retirement, Gambhir brings valuable experience to the team.

See Also: Shan Masood Appointed as Captain of Karachi Kings for PSL Season 9

Venky expressed gratitude to Nitish Rana for his leadership in Iyer’s absence in the previous season, stating, “We are grateful that Nitish agreed to step into Shreyas’s shoes last season and did a great job. Nitish, as Vice Captain, will undoubtedly support Shreyas for the benefit of #TeamKKR.”

Shreyas Iyer commended Rana for his leadership during the challenges of the last season and expressed his delight at Rana being named Vice Captain for the upcoming edition. “Nitish did a great job not only filling in for me but also with his commendable leadership. I am delighted that KKR has named him Vice Captain. No doubt it will strengthen the leadership group,” Iyer remarked.

In a shocking incident, Nitish Rana’s wife Saachi Marwah was attacked by two men when she was travelling in her car in Delhi. Saachi Marwah put this on her story that while she was travelling back to her home from work, two men started stalking and chasing her in Kirti Nagar area, Delhi. They even started hitting the car randomly. She also added that when she complained about this to Delhi Police, she did not get a good response from them. Saachi Marwah is clearly not happy with the response that she got from the cops. According to Saachi Marwah, Cops told her that “so now that you’ve reach home safe, let it go! Next time number note kar lena”

Netizens came in support of Nitish Rana’s wife on twitter after the tweet above was share.

Here’s the public reaction on the incident :

In a recent development in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has imposed fines on Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Nitish Rana and Mumbai Indians’ (MI) player Hrithik Shokeen following a heated exchange during a match between the two teams.

The incident occurred during the 12th over of the KKR innings, when Nitish Rana and Hrithik Shokeen were involved in a verbal spat on the field

The altercation was caught on camera, and the footage quickly went viral on social media.

After reviewing the incident, the BCCI decided to impose a fine of ₹8 lakh on Rana for his involvement in the incident. Shokeen was also fined ₹6 lakh for his role in the altercation.

In addition to this, Mumbai Indians’ Suryakumar Yadav has also been fined ₹12 lakh for his behavior during the match.

 Yadav was found guilty of dissent after he was given out lbw during the Mumbai Indians’ innings. He had refused to leave the field and had a heated argument with the umpire before finally walking off.

The BCCI has taken a strong stance against such behavior on the field and has warned players against engaging in such altercations in the future.

 “We take such incidents very seriously and have a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of misconduct on the field. Players are expected to maintain the highest standards of behavior and conduct themselves in a manner that upholds the spirit of the game. “

-The board said

Rana and Shokeen have accepted the fines imposed on them and apologized for their behavior. Yadav has also obtained his punishment and has promised to behave better in the future.

The incident has once again highlighted the importance of maintaining decorum on the field and the need for players to uphold the values of the game. With the IPL being one of the most popular sporting events in the world, the BCCI will be hoping that players will be more responsible in their actions going forward.

On April 1, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) played Punjab Kings in their first IPL 2023 match. On March 31, the league will start.

The 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season will begin in March. However, prior to this, the two-time champion Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) named Nitish Rana captain in place of Shreyas Iyer due to an injury.

Nitish will be the only one in charge of the command until Shreyas does not arrive. However, the thing to note is that there are numerous KKR players who, in comparison to Nitish Rana, could have served as a superior captain. However, Nitish has been backed by KKR management. The question now is whether or not the team itself will lose this bet.

Nitish Rana, 29, who was born in Delhi, has captained his state in domestic cricket. In 12 T20 matches of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, he was captain. In this, he had won 8 matches, w had lost in 4. In such a circumstance, it would be necessary to determine his capacity to earn the trust of the KKR team management.

The West Indies’ Andre Russell and Sunil Narine, as well as the New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee, were also in the KKR team, making them a better captaincy candidate than Nitish. However, the franchise placed this wager solely on a local player and handed over team leadership.

Sunil Narine was a strong contender for the captaincy

Caribbean spin and all-rounder Sunil Narine was a strong contender for captaincy in the absence of Shreyas Iyer. Sunil was a key member of the team that helped KKR win the championship in 2012 and 2014. In the most recent ILT20 league that took place in the United Arab Emirates, Sunil was also captain of the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (ADKR) team. The ADKRs had only won one of their ten matches and were at the bottom of the points table. Despite this, his experience was putting him ahead of the other candidates for captaincy. However, how Nitish handles this obligation at this point remains to be seen.

Andre Russell was also an option for the captaincy

Since 2014, Caribbean all-rounder Andre Russell has been associated with the team. He is more familiar with the staff, team management, and the other players. Additionally, he has served as captain in the Bangladesh Premier League and Caribbean Premier League. In addition, he has frequently managed the innings while giving the team a significant victory.

Additionally, he possesses a wealth of experience, which the team has benefited greatly thus far.

Tim Southee showed strength in the captaincy of New Zealand

Tim Southee, the best bowler in New Zealand, appears to be an unpopular choice. He recently took over for Kane Williamson as captain of the New Zealand team in all three formats (Test, ODI, and T20). Under his leadership, this seasoned fast bowler had established a record. He captained New Zealand in 22 short-format games, winning 13 of them and losing only six. Southee has a great sense of cricket.

Squad of Kolkata Knight Riders:

Shreyas Iyer (injured), Andre Russell, Venkatesh Iyer, Sunil Narine, Nitish Rana (c), Rinku Singh, Varun Chakraborty, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Anukul Roy, Shardul Thakur, Lockie Ferguson, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Harshit Rana, Liton Das, Kulwant Khejorolia, Suyash Sharma, Narayan Jagdishan, Vaibhav Arora, Shakib Al Hasan, David VJ, Mandeep Singh.