Asia Cup: Gautam Gambhir says he’s against players being friendly with rivals during matches

 The World Cup champion Gambhir cited franchise cricket as another factor in modern matches' lack of excessive aggressiveness.

The World Cup champion Gautam Gambhir has stated that he is against cricket players showing too much camaraderie with opponents' players during matches.

Gambhir made his remarks during the match between India and Pakistan. The southpaw, who was a member of the Indian cricket squad that won the 2011 Cricket World Cup, cited franchise cricket as one of the factors contributing to the lack of aggression in modern cricket matches.

You must leave your friendship outside of the boundary lines when you play for your country's team. Having a game face is zaroori. Rehni chahiye dosti bahaar. Both sets of players must display hostility in their eyes. After those six or seven hours of cricket, you are free to be as sociable as you choose. The mid-innings show on Star Sports had Gambhir saying, "Those hours are really crucial because you're not just representing yourself, you're representing a nation of over a billion. "These days, it's common to see players from opposing teams giving each other high fives and fist bumps during games. A few years ago, you would never have seen that. A friendly game is scheduled.

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In response to a question regarding his altercation with Pakistani wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal during the 2010 Asia Cup, Mahendra Singh Dhoni eventually had to remove the Indian opener as things became heated.

Pakistan vs India

Pakistan had scored 267 in that game while batting first, with Salman Butt getting 74 and Akmal scoring 51. Before ultimately succeeding in getting Gambhir to react when the Indians stepped out to bat, Akmal repeatedly sought to get under Gambhir's skin. In that match, Gambhir hit 83 runs, and with the support of Dhoni, who added 50 runs, India was able to win by three wickets off the penultimate ball.

Gambhir made it clear that, despite their fight, there was no animosity between him and Akmal.

We have a great friendship. In reality, he handed me a bat and I gave him one. I used the bat that Kamran had given me for an entire season of play. Recently, we spoke for an hour," Gambhir continued.

He continued by saying that as long as players didn't go too far, slapping someone during a game was acceptable.

He continued by saying that as long as players didn't go too far, slapping someone during a game was acceptable.

Sledge away, but avoid getting personal. You must respect your boundaries. Don't go too personal or involve someone's family. Banter is OK. There used to be taunting during games versus Australia and Pakistan," he remarked.