"I Was Made the Villain": Oval Curator Lee Fortis Breaks Silence on Heated Argument with Gambhir

Lee Forts, the pitch curator at The Oval, recently opened up about a heated argument he had with India’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, just two days before the fifth Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. A video of the exchange, which went viral a week ago showed the two having a tense conversation on the field. It turns out, the disagreement happened because Forts was frustrated with the Indian players and coaches standing too close to the pitch during their practice session.

Things quickly got heated, with Gambhir telling Fortis several times that he was "just a groundsman and nothing more." Before the situation could spiral further, India’s batting coach Sitanshu Kotak stepped in to try and defuse the tension, talking to Fortis. But Gambhir wasn’t done yet, he got even angrier and told Kotak not to get involved in the conversation with the curator.

According to an ESPNcricinfo report, Gambhir lost his cool and told Fortis, "You stop it. You don't tell us what we need to do. You have no right to tell us. You're just a groundsman stay in your capacity. Nothing beyond. You are just a groundsman."

VIDEO | Indian team's head coach Gautam Gambhir was seen having verbal spat with chief curator Lee Fortis at The Oval Cricket Ground in London ahead of the last Test match of the series starting Thursday.

After having drawn the fourth Test at Old Trafford, India have a chance… pic.twitter.com/hfjHOg9uPf

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 29, 2025

Finally speaking out about the incident, Fortis has expressed that he was unfairly made the villain in the situation. He emphasized that there was no reason for it and added that, despite the drama, he was happy to see the electric atmosphere at The Oval during the match.

“Well, I was never the villain; I was made into one. Hope you guys enjoyed the show, and the atmosphere was like the IPL. It was a great game,” Fortis said. 

Joe Root and Harry Brook Shine, But Siraj’s Brilliant Bowling Seals India’s Victory

Fortis has every reason to be proud of the pitch, as it played a big part in the exciting Test match. The pitch was perfect for batting most of the time, with Joe Root and Harry Brook scoring well on Day 4 while chasing 374. But on Day 5, Mohammed Siraj turned things around with his brilliant bowling, helping India win. Even with the same pitch and an old ball, Siraj made it move, showing both his skill and the quality of the track. The pitch gave something for everyone runs, bounce, swing and a great finish. It’s no surprise that Fortis has been named ECB’s Curator of the Year three times. Now, with The Hundred starting on August 9, he’s busy preparing the square for the white-ball games.

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