India's head coach clashes with Oval staff before fifth Test as tempers flare
England were enjoying a break but, with the series still to be decided and India 2-1 down after their fightback at Old Trafford, the visitors' work in the nets was far from straightforward as tensions surfaced in angry exchanges.
Reports suggest that Fortis was unhappy with India using parts of the main square and was told 'you can't tell us what to do'. Sitanshu Kotak, the India batting coach, apparently accused the head groundkeeper of being 'a bit arrogant' and shouting at members of India's staff.
Gambhir, who played 58 Tests for India, was seen on camera wagging his finger at Fortis saying: 'You can't tell us what to do … you're just the groundsman, nothing beyond.'
After walking away in conversation with Kotak, who appeared to take on the role of mediator, Fortis told Gambhir that he may be forced to lodge a complaint against him, drawing a response of: 'You can go and report to whoever you want.'
Afterwards, Fortis said: 'It is quite a big game coming up. It is not my job to be happy with [Gautam Gambhir] or not. I have never met him before today. You saw what he was like this morning. It's OK, I am fine. We have nothing to hide.'
Kotak said Fortis's objections to a cool box being wheeled on to the square kicked off the arguments. 'He was sitting on the roller, he shouted and told the support staff not to take it there,' he said. 'It is good to be a little possessive and it is also good to be protective, but not that much. Gautam just said do not talk to the support staff like this.
'Most of the team knows that the curator is not the easiest person to get on with. So, that gives a lot of answers. When you're working with very intelligent and highly skilled people, if you sound a bit arrogant or if you come across like … you can be protective. At the end of the day it is a cricket pitch. It is not an antique where you can't touch.'
Whether India's frustrations included concerns over the Test pitch as well as their training provisions is not known, but the Oval deck is expected to carry some live grass at the start of the game and provide greater pace and bounce than in the previous three matches.
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The England attack has struggled for cut-through at times, not least in the last innings of the fourth Test at Old Trafford, where they took four wickets in 143 overs.
India's rearguard action ended in rancour, with Ben Stokes annoyed that Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja declined his offer of an early handshake as they pursued centuries. Both batters reached three figures, but did so with some persistent sledging from England fielders.
Relations between the teams had been relatively serene until a time‑wasting row at the third Test at Lord's, where Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett were treated to some choice words from the India captain, Shubman Gill.
England responded by accusing Gill of running down the clock during his own innings and Mohammed Siraj was fined for his send-off of Duckett the next morning, though a brief shoulder-to-shoulder contact between the two players was accepted as accidental.
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