Top 5 biggest fights in Indian cricket history

Top 5 biggest fights in Indian cricket history: When ugly altercations disrupt the atmosphere of a match, cricket being called a gentleman’s game is being questioned. A mistake on the field, cut-throat competition, matters related to selection, captaincy, sledging, and don’t know how many reasons due to which players lose their cool on and off the field.

Yes, sports mean adrenaline rush, banters between players are fun to watch and read about, and so are the dramas, and the astounding revelations. Cricket has seen it all, especially in recent times.

But to say cricketers get involved in unnecessary behaviors only during these times maybe is an overstatement. There have been stories told by those who have witnessed or heard about fights between players, that had and had not escaped the media’s attention. There was no social media during the early stages of Indian cricket so small details were forgotten and the match only remained the talking point for the eager fans.

But now, one often hears about two players, from the same or different countries getting involved in unforgiving behaviors that shed a bad light not just on the players but on the game itself. Almost every sport has players of all sorts, some are ice cool, and give little to no reactions to matters less important than the game. Then there are some who are too aggressive to keep calm and vent out their emotions right on the field and that’s how they function and play the game.

In Indian cricket, over the years, there have been fights among players, rumors, banters, and on-field mistakes that gave rise to an altercation. The list below will narrate five of those famous fights that happened between two players.

Related: WATCH: Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir get into a verbal fight as RCB beat LSG in low-scoring affair

Top 5 biggest fights in Indian cricket history

1. Mohammad Azharuddin and Navjot Singh Sidhu

Navjot Singh Sidhu, in 1996, decided to fly back to India during England’s tour without any reason. Though there has been no official report on this, Sidhu was reportedly angry with the then-captain Mohammad Azharuddin. After many years, Jaywant Lele, the former Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary revealed that Sidhu did not like Azharuddin’s constant mouthing of abusive language.

“Sidhu said he was terribly upset and decided it was not tolerable! He had not come on the tour to listen to abuses from the skipper. He was upset, so he decided to leave the team quietly,” Lele wrote in the book.

2. Ravindra Jadeja and Suresh Raina

Jadeja and Raina were involved in a heated argument during a tri-series tournament in 2013. India were playing against West Indies when Raina, who is considered one of India’s best fielders, dropped a catch off Jadeja’s bowling. Jadeja had a heated moment with Raina shortly after that. But thankfully things started to calm down as Raina could be seen putting an arm over Jadeja later.

3. Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja

During a tense final between India and Pakistan at the 2017 Champions Trophy, Hardik Pandya played like a lone warrior while chasing a massive target of 339. But a mix-up with Ravindra Jadeja ended Pandya’s knock and left him fuming. He swung his bat and took a long walk back to the dressing room.

Though Pandya was furious with Jadeja, he later apologized to him. He told Cricbuzz then: “People don’t know this. Whatever I did, happened, was part of the game. I went and said sorry to Jaddu on the flight. I felt very bad. I was naive at the time.” India were bowled out for a mere 158 runs.

4. MS Dhoni and Virender Sehwag

Though there has been no official evidence on the same, rumors claimed that the two former stalwarts of the game avoided each other in team meetings. In 2012, Dhoni wanted to play the youngsters to prepare them for the next World Cup after a successful 2011 World Cup. But when reports came out that Dhoni’s choosing the youngsters to play was also to save runs, Sehwag in a press conference revealed that Dhoni did not communicate this reason to them. Later Dhoni revealed that the reports intitially made both of them feel a bit awkward.

“Not really. A bit awkward initially,” Dhoni told the journalists about the rumored rift between him and Sehwag during a press conference that year. “You may at times feel that maybe the person is believing what is being said, and the second person thinks maybe he has said it. Once you get through the talks and everything happens, it gets back to as smooth as it was,” he added.

5. Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar

Dravid and Tendulkar are two of the most respected cricketers but even they share a rift between them. Even Tendulkar mentioned the same in his book. Tendulkar claimed that Dravid, who captained the team for the first Test against Pakistan due to the absence of an injured Sourav Ganguly, declared the innings two overs earlier. Tendulkar couldn’t complete his double century and remained not out on 194 and he was unhappy with Dravid’s decision.

In the book Playing it My Way, Tendulkar wrote: “Rahul said that the call was taken with the interests of the team in mind. It was important to demonstrate that we meant business and were keen to win. I wasn’t convinced.”

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