There’s nothing wrong with being a patriot. In fact, we love the fact that Gautam Gambhir has come forward and promised to bear the education expenses of the childen of 25 CRPH personnel who passed away during combat against Maoists. It was a touching gesture and we really hope more cricketers (and those who are fortunate to earn surplus money) come forward and follow suit.

What we don’t like is overly emotional comments (which seem fit for a 19-year-old) that demand unrealistic things. For example, in a tweet, Gautam mentioned that, “For every slap on my army’s Jawan lay down at least a 100 jihadi lives. Whoever wants Azadi LEAVE NOW! Kashmir is ours. #kashmirbelongs2us.”

Well, Kashmir is a sensitive issue and celebrities of Gautam’s stature should refrain from commenting anything rash. Also, if killing jihadis were so easy, people would have done it by now.

This isn’t all that is wrong with Gambhir. When it comes to cricket too, Gambhir lets his feelings get the better of him. Who can forget the infamous altercation he had with Virat Kohli during an IPL match? In 2013, he even had a spat with someone as senior as Rahul Dravid. Additionally, he even called the Rajasthan Royals team pretty ordinary (barring Yusuf Pathan) once. Not something that you would expect from a captain. Respecting your opposition, is the first rule of sportsmanship. 

All said and done, we really respect him as a batsman. He has a wide range of shots, and no one can deny his match-winning knock that won us the World Cup in 2011. If only, he could keep a rein on his emotions, we’ll be extremely grateful.

Image courtesy: Gautam Gambhir’s Facebook page