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Why 2025 was a turbulent year for Indian cricket.
By Rahul Das
2025 turned out to be a year of sharp highs and painful lows for Indian cricket. It started with hope and confidence, giving a feeling that an exciting chapter was unfolding. But as the months passed, that excitement slowly faded away, replaced with disappointment, dressing-room tensions and the exit of some of the games’ biggest names.
The rift: Gambhir vs. the icons
Away from the pitch, the central narrative of 2025 wasn’t just about runs and wickets, but about a widening rift involving head coach Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
Kohli was seen seemingly ignoring head coach Gautam Gambhir at the end of the first ODI against South Africa. Some fans noticed the moment during the match on Sunday, November 30 and the clip quickly went viral on social media. The incident happened after Kohli played a match-winning knock and India secured a 17-run win in Ranchi. As Kohli walked back to the dressing room, Gautam Gambhir was sitting near the entrance. Kohli appeared to notice him but walked past without shaking hands or acknowledging the head coach. This brief moment led to speculation online about tension between the two.
Additionally, reports have been doing the rounds about a possible cold war in the dressing room between Kohli and Gambhir. The two have been on opposite sides in several on-field clashes over the years, especially in the IPL, where they have always played for rival teams.The friction extended to Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar. The BCCI’s “domestic cricket diktat” – which forced seniors like Rohit and Kohli back into the Ranji Trophy to prove their form – was seen by many as a move backed by Gambhir and Agarkar to phase out the veterans.Unlike Kohli’s silence, Rohit Sharma was frequently seen in heated, animated discussions with Gambhir on the sidelines, signaling a fundamental disagreement over the team’s aggressive “chopping and changing” policy.
A gutted fandom: The end of an era
Sadly, the hardest part of 2025 was seeing a golden era come to an end through retirements. In May, the cricket world was stunned when Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli both announced their retirement from Test cricket just days apart. While they continue in ODIs, seeing them in the whites is now a thing of the past.The sense of loss grew even more in August when Cheteshwar Pujara, known as the “Modern Wall,” retired from all forms of cricket, ending a brilliant career of 103 Tests.
A video of BCCI selector Pragyan Ojha talking separately with Virat Kohli and coach Gautam Gambhir was going viral. In the clip, filmed at Ranchi Airport, Ojha is first seen sitting with Kohli, listening to him carefully. After some time, he moves to Gambhir, who is sitting on the other side and shares the same conversation with him.
The video comes amid reports that communication between the team management and senior players has dropped, especially between Gambhir, Ajit Agarkar and Virat-Rohit. In the viral clip, while Kohli and Ojha are seen talking together, Gambhir sits alone at a noticeable distance. This has sparked questions on social media about whether a gap still exists between Kohli and Gambhir.Earlier, Ojha also met Rohit Sharma, where the two shook hands and spoke with smiles. Ojha and Rohit have been teammates before with the Mumbai Indians. ( Contd…)
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