Subhayan Chakraborty at the Oval
The Oval in London, on Tuesday, became the stage for a heated confrontation between India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir and the venue’s head groundsman, Lee Fortis, during Team India’s first training session ahead of the fifth Test against England. The altercation, captured on video, underscored ongoing tensions between Fortis and visiting teams, marking one more chapter in the groundsman’s controversial tenure at Surrey’s historic ground.
The incident began when Fortis, known for his over-possessiveness of the Oval’s pitches, instructed the Indian team to maintain a distance of two and a half meters from the wicket during their inspection. This directive irked Gambhir, who was seen in footage shouting, “You don’t tell us what we need to do.” The exchange escalated, with Fortis threatening to report Gambhir to the ICC match referee, alleging the coach used the ‘F’ word.
India’s batting coach, Sitanshu Kotak, later revealed that the team felt restricted by Fortis’s instructions, describing the interaction as “awkward,” particularly since the players or the coaching staff were not wearing spikes that could damage the pitch. “When we went to see the wicket, coaches were standing there and then he (curator) sent a man asking us to stay two-and-a-half-metre away from the wicket, which was little surprising because on a cricket wicket, which is hosting five-day match a day after and we were standing there wearing joggers. So that was a little awkward,” Kotak told journalists in the press conference.
Fortis, who has served as Surrey’s Head of Ground Staff since 2012, is no stranger to such disputes. Before taking the top role, Fortis worked as an assistant groundsman at the Oval until 2006, later managing the Honourable Artillery Company ground in London. Since his return, he has earned a reputation for producing exceptional pitches, securing the Bernard Flack Memorial Trophy for the best multi-day pitches at the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) Grounds Manager of the Year Awards in 2024; his third consecutive win and fourth overall. The Grounds Management Association praised Fortis and his team for their “consistently outstanding marks” for County Championship and Test pitches during the 2024 season.
However, Fortis’s protective approach to pitch management has often led to friction with touring teams. Recently, he reportedly clashed with the Indian women’s cricket team during a match at the Oval, though details of the incident remain scarce. Similar disputes have arisen over pitch conditions, practice facilities, and restricted access to preparation areas, with some describing Fortis as overly assertive in safeguarding his domain.
“When one of the support staff was bringing the cooling box there, still he was sitting on the roller, he shouted and told him not to take it there. Now the weight of that cooling box will be 10 kilos according to me. It will not be more than that. So, it is good to be a little possessive and it is also good to be protective, but not that much.
“So, then, Gautam just said that do not talk to the support staff like this, because the support staff, we all come under the head coach. Any head coach will say that you cannot shout from there and say this. So, it was very normal. Then he came there and he started talking. I think it all started from the time when we were watching the wicket. And to be very honest, if you want me to be very honest, before coming to the Oval, most of the team knows that the curator is not the easiest person to get on with.” Kotak said.
The Oval’s demanding schedule, hosting around 60 days of cricket annually, likely contributes to Fortis’s vigilance. His interaction with Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin before the 2023 World Test Championship final, featured on Ashwin’s YouTube channel, hinted at earlier tensions, possibly linked to inconsistent bounce on practice pitches. Despite these controversies, Fortis’s expertise remains widely respected, as evidenced by his repeated industry accolades.
The Gambhir-Fortis spat adds to the story of the Oval as a challenging venue for visiting teams, where meticulous ground preparation meets the high stakes of international cricket. Whether this altercation will lead to formal complaints or simply fade into the backdrop of the series remains to be seen. Though chances of any formal complaints are unlikely.
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