Now, a decade later, Kohli and Gambhir have made headlines again after the massive RCB vs LSG match. The fight in IPL 2023 almost confirmed the rumours of both of them not liking each other. Though none of them have made any public comments regarding the heat.

Kohli and Gambhir are both very passionate and a few times lose their composure on the field. The rumours got finished down when Kohli and Gambhir hugged each other during IPL 2024 and Gambhir later joined team India as head coach.

Former Indian cricketer Piyush Chawla put light on the relationship of Kohli and Gambhir, stating that there is no rift between the players.

“I and Gauti bhai were doing a show. A question was asked ‘When Virat completed his 50th century, which bowled did he take the single off? I couldn’t answer it, but Gambhir did it. And he’s like ‘Now don’t say there’s any tiff. Gauti bhai is all class. He is one of the best,” Chawla said on Shubhankar Mishra’s YouTube channel.

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A lot of cricketers have praised the leadership of Rohit, mostly noting the deep team spirits they share with him. Indian veteran spinner Piyush Chawla also gave his praise on Rohit’s captaincy.

Piyush revealed one of his conversation with Rohit Sharma when he called him at 2:30 AM IST, when he was going to plan the strategy for removing Delhi Capitals (DC) opener David Warner.

“I’ve played so much cricket with him that we’ve reached a comfort level. We sit off-the-field as well. Once, at 2:30 in the night, he texted me and asked, “you up?” He drew a field on paper and discussed with me about potentially dismissing Warner. Even at that time, he was thinking about how he could get the best out of me. Rohit is One of the Greatest leaders ever, very Smart on the field. When he defended low totals, Captain’s role was very important & Rohit defended many low totals like in 2017 IPL Final. He is true Leader of the Game”  Chawla told Shubhankar Mishra on YouTube.

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MI finished last in the IPL 2022, and they picked up Chawla right next year. He came out as the highest wicket-taker for the franchise.

Though a lot of questions were raised over the effectiveness of Chawla for a decade after his last international outing, Chawla proved himself with his experience.

“With due respect to everyone, MI had good spinners but somewhere down the line, experience matters. If a pressure situation arises, the way an experienced campaigner will handle it, a youngster won’t be able to. When we were 20-21, we used to bowl to escape punishment, now we do it to pick wickets. When people questioned, ‘Why Piyush Chawla, and this that?’, I said fine, let them talk,” Chawla said.

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What happened was Rohit had plans for 2011 World Cup, but MS Dhoni was planning to have another player in the squad. In an interview in 2023, former Indian selector Raja Venkat gave out the details from the selection meeting. He stated that Rohit’s name was in the plan but Dhoni wanted Piyush Chawla to play instead.

“When we sat to select the team, Rohit was very much in the scheme of things. Yashpal Sharma and I were in South Africa at that time because India was touring South Africa, and the other three selectors – Srikkanth, (Surendra) Bhave and (Narendra) Hirwani – were in Chennai. So, when we were selecting the team, numbers 1-14, every name was accepted by the panel. No. 15, we suggested the name of Rohit Sharma. Gary Kirsten also felt it was a perfect selection. But the captain wanted Piyush Chawla. So immediately, Kirsten somersaulted. He said: ‘I think that’s a better choice.’ So, that is how Rohit Sharma got left out,” said Venkat.

“We didn’t get a chance to talk to him, but again we were also disappointed that we couldn’t select him. But when the captain and coach wanted Piyush as the 15th member, we all accepted it. Initially, we had selected the 15 which we all felt was the right one.”

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At the age of eighteen, Piyush Chawla had already achieved success on the international front as a member of the Indian team that won the 2007 T20 World Cup.

It was difficult, though, to adapt to the demands of IPL cricket. Chawla took on the fearsome Chennai Super Kings in his first game for Kings XI Punjab (formerly known as Punjab Kings). Chawla’s confidence was seriously shaken by Michael Hussey’s century during this match, as he was struck for 20 runs in just one over.

Reflecting on this difficult period, Chawla shared his experience on the 2 Sloggers podcast: “Our first match was against CSK and they scored some 230-odd runs.

I bowled one over and got smashed for 20 runs. Just got one over. I thought ‘It’s ok.

In the 2 Sloggers podcast, Chawla reflected on this trying time and related his experience: “We played CSK in our first game, and they scored over 230 runs.

After I bowled one over, I was hit for twenty runs. I’ve just defeated one. It’s okay, I thought to myself.

The done thing is done. For the second game against the Rajastha Royals, we traveled to Jaipur. When we were batting first, I scored about 24 runs in 11–12 balls. I bowled and let up 30 runs in 2 overs.

Chawla’s confidence was restored by Warne’s advice. In his subsequent encounter, Chawla showcased his genuine abilities with a commanding 2/19 spell.With this performance, a lengthy and prosperous IPL career officially began.

After 17 years, Piyush Chawla has accumulated 192 wickets in the IPL and is now considered a veteran of the league.

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“I’ve learned a lot from him. He’s a very senior. And the way he’s played cricket, the way he’s bowled throughout the year, he’s done a great job (talking about Mishra). And I also saw that podcast; it was great. Virat, whatever I have played with him, whenever I have met him, it has been a very good experience for me. We played junior cricket together. And after that, we played in the IPL. When we played together for India, things were very good with me. Everyone has their own way of thinking. So, whatever interaction we’ve had, we still get along very well.” Chawla said.

Piyush also recalled the time about his recent meeting with Kohli in the Asia Cup 2023. he talked about how Kohli jokingly talked about getting some food.

“In fact, when I was doing commentary during the Asia Cup 2023 and I was standing on the boundary, and Virat was fielding there, he came to me and said, ‘PC, let’s order something good.’ Because we were both fond of eating. So, even today, there are similar discussions that used to happen 10-15 years ago. It has been a very good experience with me.” Chawla added.

On a podcast with Shubhankar Mishra, Piyush said “I have seen Virat change a lot. We had almost stopped talking. When you get fame and power, they think people are reaching out to them for a purpose. I was never one of those. I have known Cheeku since the time he was 14, when he used to eat samosas, when he needed pizza every night. But there is a huge difference in the Cheeku I knew and Virat Kohli the captain.”

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The veteran bowler credited the pace quartet of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh and Hardik Pandya along with spinners Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal and Axar Patel for making it a great bowling unit.

“Over the past few years, India’s bowling attack has truly transformed. We now have one of the most complete and formidable bowling units in the world that has provided balance to the side allowing the batsmen with more freedom to play their natural game. In the game against Pakistan, our batting collapsed and it was our bowlers who got them over the line,” said Chawla.

“There have been many such occasions where our bowlers stepped up and contributed more than our batters. With the lethal pace quad of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj, Hardik Pandya, Arshdeep Singh and top-notch spinners like Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal and Axar Patel this is surely one of all time great bowling attack of India.” added Chawla.

With 3 wins and a washout against Canada, India topped Group A with 7 points and qualified for the Super 8. India are placed in Group 1 of the Super 8 stage alongside Afghanistan, Australia and Bangladesh.

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Currently, MI is standing at the bottom of the standings after losing two consecutive matches at the beginning of the season. Their first two defeats came against the Gujarat Titans (GT) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Chawla said that the home crowd will play a big role in the upcoming match. He also asked the ‘loyal’ MI fans to come and support them.

“We have to ignore the outside noise and just focus on our cricket. Indeed, at times, the crowd plays a big role and the loyal MI fans will come and support us,” Chawla was quoted by MI’s website as saying.

The 35-year-old spinner added that if the Mumbai-based franchise loses a few early wickets, then they have extra batters in the end to help them.

“We have seen that last year as well, that when the team scores 200-plus runs, it gives the batters the freedom to play freely. Even if the team loses wickets, they have some extra batters and that makes it difficult for the bowlers,” he added.

Mumbai Indians Squad: Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan (Wk), Naman Dhir, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (C), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Shams Mulani, Gerald Coetzee, Piyush Chawla, Jasprit Bumrah, Kwena Maphaka, Mohammad Nabi, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Gopal, Luke Wood, Vishnu Vinod, Arjun Tendulkar, Nehal Wadhera, Kumar Kartikeya, Shivalik Sharma, Anshul Kamboj, Akash Madhwal, Nuwan Thushara, Dewald Brevis.

Rajasthan Royals Squad: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (Wk/C), Riyan Parag, Ravichandran Ashwin, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Sandeep Sharma, Avesh Khan, Nandre Burger, Navdeep Saini, Keshav Maharaj, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Rovman Powell, Tanush Kotian, Kuldeep Sen, Donovan Ferreira, Abid Mushtaq, Shubham Dubey, Kunal Singh Rathore

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MI’s star Piyush Chawla has been on fire in the ongoing season of Indian Premier League. With a total of 21 wickets to his name in 15 matches, the 34-year-old right-arm leg-break bowler is the leading wicket-taker for MI in IPL 2023 and third overall in the cash-rich league this year. He has played in all 15 matches for the Rohit Sharma-led this year and has impressed everyone with his show. The Uttar Pradesh-born spinner, who won the ODI World Cup in 2011 under MS Dhoni’s captaincy will be a key player for MI when they take on defending champions Gujarat Titans in the second qualifier match of IPL 2023 on Friday (May 26) in Ahmedabad.

In the do-or-die game for both teams, Chawla, will look to create history and join the likes of Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravichandran Ashwin in a unique list. Chawla, who has played in a total of 7 T20Is for India in which he picked up four wickets, will look to become only the third Indian bowler after the Rajasthan Royals duo to take 300 or more wickets in T20 matches if takes three wicket on Friday.

At present he has 297 wickets to his name in 256 T20 matches and if the gets rid of three more batters at the Narendra Modi Stadium, he will join the elite list.

IPL Qualifier 3 clash between MI and GT

After a 15-run defeat by MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings, defending champions Gujarat Titans are going to face Mumbai Indians in the Qualifier 2 match of the IPL 2023 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on May 26, Friday. MI knocked out Lucknow Super Giants and a win over GT will secure their spot in the finals.

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Mumbai Indians have 12 points from 12 games and are placed third behind four-time winners Chennai Super Kings (15) and Gujarat Titans (16). CSK have played 13 games while the Titans have played 12 games, thus putting Mumbai Indians in a good position to overtake Chennai by winning against Lucknow on Tuesday.

One of the reasons for Mumbai Indians making a comeback, according to veteran spinner, Piyush Chawla is that the players are backing each other and enjoying their game.

Currently, in the middle of his best-ever IPL season, leg spinner Chawla said that the team is well placed to make the playoffs with their destiny in their own hands ahead of the match against Lucknow Super Giants tomorrow.

“Things are in our control. If we win our remaining two matches, we can finish 1st or 2nd. We just want to play good cricket. The team picked up momentum at the right time. The confidence is very good but there is a very thin line between confidence and overconfidence and we don’t want to cross that line,” Chawla said on the eve of the clash with LSG.

Chawla missed out on the IPL for the first time last year. The snub prompted him to think about his future but he wanted to return to the tournament for his son.

“When I wasn’t picked last year and doing commentary, a lot of things were going on in my mind. I wasn’t able to decide whether I should come back or explore other things. My son is growing up and he was watching a lot of IPL and was very excited about it. So my family told me to push myself and just play for him. So I am playing for him and putting in that extra effort,” he said.

A veteran in the game, Chawla said he didn’t do anything special after missing out last year but just kept the belief in his abilities and backed himself.

“When you’ve been playing for 20 years, you don’t need to do anything special. I was playing T20 matches wherever I could. I am somebody who is done with bowling in the nets. I love the challenge of bowling in a match,” said Chawla in the pre-match press conference on Monday.

Despite playing at the top level for close to two decades now, Chawla is not in the mood to stop anytime soon at 34.

“If it’s up to me, I’d like to play for 10 more years. As long as I’m contributing to the team and putting my body on the line, I’ll continue to play.”

MI have been unstoppable as the tournament has gone well after a slightly tough start. Chawla put the team’s success down to them backing each and getting into the groove at the right time.

“We were just backing each other and enjoying our cricket. The best thing about cricket is that it is a team game but it’s also an individual sport because only if the individuals perform can the team do well. People say that Mumbai conceded 200 runs but we chased it down as well, so you can imagine the kind of pitches we are playing on. The way we have finished games is lovely to watch from the dressing room,” Chawla said.

After the clash with Lucknow Super Giants, Mumbai Indians play their final league match against Sunrisers Hyderabad at home in Wankhede Stadium on May 21 to wrap up the proceedings.

Rohit Sharma’s side will aim to win both games and hope to finish in the top two.

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