“If there was never any conflict in sport, it would be so dull,” says Graeme Swann
On May 1, Kohli and Gambhir got into a verbal argument during Royal Challengers Bangalore’s away match against Lucknow Super Giants. As the match drew notice for all the wrong reasons, the former Indian captain was spotted arguing with Afghan bowler Naveen-ul-Haq and Kyle Mayers.
Watching an absolute superstar at the moment…Fastest 50 in the HISTORY of the #TataIPL for Yashasvi Jaiswal!!!
Put this man in an 🇮🇳 jersey soon 🌟👏🏼@rajasthanroyals putting on a clinic & @ImZaheer @Swannyg66 @GraemeSmith49 & I are happy to watch it unfold on #MatchCentre… pic.twitter.com/KDk1wUQb2F
— Suhail Chandhok (@suhailchandhok) May 11, 2023
Former England off-spinner Graeme Swann believes the dramatic brawl between Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli pales in comparison to the intensely contested Ashes series, adding that the sport would be “boring” without such situations.
https://twitter.com/AbhiThaker8/status/1655609835633913859?s=20
“Let’s face it, if there was never any conflict in sport, it would be so dull. Having played Ashes test series throughout my life, this is nothing compared to that,” Swann told reporters.
“You should never try to dilute the players so much that they do not wear their hearts on their sleeves. One of the reasons Virat Kohli is ‘Virat Kohli’ is because he’s so passionate about his cricket. He’s so in your face when he’s playing and he intimidates a lot of players. Some may think he’s going too far. They are massive personalities, who grew up and played together. Gautam is never going to back down to Virat. If it spills over off the field and there’s swearing stuff then that’s wrong. As long as there are handshakes after the game and has not created a bad image on the screen, then I’m all for their passion,” he added.
For violating the IPL’s Code of Conduct, Kohli and Gambhir, the LSG team’s coach, suffered harsh penalties and were fined 100% of their match earnings. Naveen was also penalised 50% of his match money. Swann believes there is nothing wrong with Kohli being rough, and believes he is ‘Kohli’ because of his love for the game.
Important win. Great character shown by the boys. Onto the next one. 💪 pic.twitter.com/vQlQyrp2ge
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) May 14, 2023
MS Dhoni is still playing strong, and England spins quite well. Graeme Swann says the IPL 2023 should not be the World Cup-winning captain’s last season. It is commonly assumed that the current IPL season will be Dhoni’s final appearance. “Every time he comes to bat, he hits sixes.” Why this will be his ‘final year’ eludes me. If he wants to continue playing, he may,” said Graeme Swann, an IPL specialist with Jio Cinema. “In my books, he is brilliant with the gloves, brilliant with the bat and his captaincy is still the best in the IPL. I don’t think it’s his last year, I think he’s too big to go,” he also said.
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) May 13, 2023
The ‘Impact Player’ rule has resulted in a record amount of 200-plus totals in the IPL, and Swann feels it should be replicated at the international level, particularly in the ODI format, which many say is dying. The Impact Player rule, which was initially used in Indian domestic cricket, allows teams to change any one member of their starting XI during a match.
“I see it as a success and it should come into international cricket, especially in 50-over format because that needs something to liven it up,” Swann said. “It’s nowhere near to T20s anymore. I think it works. There should not be just one player to pick from there should be like a bench like in football you have five subs and at any point of time you can just get one in. I would not have any issue with that ever,” he concluded.
