Gautam Gambhir played his last white-ball game for India in 2013 and Test in 2016.
Gambhir recently became India's first coach to win two ICC trophies. As a player, he led India's scoring in the finals of the 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2011 Cricket World Cup, which India won.
However, his playing career came to an unceremonious end in 2013, just two years after his match-winning 97 in the 2011 final. Sandeep Patil, the chairman of the BCCI selection committee at the time, has detailed how his friendship with Gambhir deteriorated after he was dropped.
In 2013, Gambhir was replaced by Shikhar Dhawan in India's Test and One-Day International squads. Gambhir returned to the Indian Test team briefly in 2016 but was quickly dropped due to poor performance.
However, Patil claims that Gambhir did not react well to the decision. Patil said that Gambhir never looks at him, even when they share the same space.
"We have sat on the same television shows. Gauti is there; I am there. He has never once looked at me. Not a glance. Every time I say hello, there is no response," Patil revealed in a YouTube interview with Vickey Lalwani.
Gambhir and Patil used to share a cordial relationship and had even interacted with Patil when he was removed as India's head coach after a short stint.
However, Gambhir's departure from the Indian team resulted in a significant downturn in their friendship. Patil stated that despite the current state of their relationship, he still holds Gambhir in high regard.
"He doesn't forget, and he doesn't forgive. That's fine. I still respect him. I still like him," Patil stated.
Gambhir, who made his India debut in 2003, played 58 Tests, 147 ODIs, and 37 T20Is for India, scoring a total of 20 centuries. Gambhir's last ODI and T20I for India came in 2013 and 2012, respectively. He made a brief comeback into the Test side in late 2016.