We often heap praise on someone for his or her achievements who gets a lot of media attention and hype. But we forget about the ones who extend their valuable contributions both on and off the field. Yes, we are talking about the cricketer, Gautam Gambhir who put his heart out for India not just in cricket but elsewhere too but never did he get media attention, unlike other cricketers.
Gautam Gambhir is indeed a man of simplicity and generosity. He loves giving it back to Indian society by donating money to the poor and needy, feeding the hungry stomachs and so on. He launched a campaign ‘Ek Asha’, a kitchen community which aims to serve free food to the less unfortunate ones. Gambhir emphasised that ‘nobody should sleep hungry’.
Gambhir gave absolutely everything in the 2007 ICC World Cup T20 final and in 2011 ICC ODI World Cup final by chipping in with the highest scores of 75 and 97 respectively. When the team was under pressure, he took the bowling attack to the cleaners. But, he was not named the man of the match.
He has done everything to win fans’ hearts. He doesn’t like to publicize. This serves as a testament to the fact that he is a man for society, something which you don’t see in other cricketers. He is one of our true heroes.
On the other hand, he let down fans with five bold statements and it didn’t go well with the fans.
1. Gambhir once questioned Ajinkya Rahane’s place in the Indian Test squad. “Ajinkya is pretty fortunate that he’s still part of this side because he’s leading”.
2. Gambhir made an appalling remark on New Zealand after the T20 World Cup in Australia. “My favourite side after India (for the T20 World Cup) was New Zealand. Seeing them bullied around like an apprentice wasn’t a pleasant experience”
3. When India won the bronze medal at Toky Olympics, Gambhir tweeted, “Forget 1983, 2007 or 2011, this medal in Hockey is bigger than any World Cup! #IndianHockeyMyPride 🇮🇳”
4. During the anniversary of the 2011 World Cup, ESPNCricinfo posted MS Dhoni’s picture hitting the six. To which, Gambhir replied, “Just a reminder @ESPNcricinfo: #worldcup2011 was won by entire India, entire Indian team & all support staff. High time you hit your obsession for a SIX.”
5. Gambhir indirectly dropped a hint that MS Dhoni was the reason for not scoring a century in the ICC ODI World Cup 2011 final.
“I remember that after the completion of one over, Dhoni told me that ‘three runs are remaining, get these three runs and your hundred would be completed’, till I was on 97, I was in the present. But as soon as I thought that I am just three runs away from getting a hundred, the rush of blood caused by the desire to get to a hundred took over,” Gambhir added.