Gambhir on Tiwary's allegations: Kolkata my home, Sourav my dada

Manoj Tiwary and Gautam Gambhir were involved in an unsavory incident during the Ranji Trophy match between Delhi and Bengal at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium. The former Indian opener reportedly pushed the on-field umpire and was involved in a war of wards with Tiwary.

Initial reports suggested that Gambhir had threatened to assault Tiwary and the duo were later slapped with fines for the on-field altercation.

Tiwary later claimed that Gambhir had made distasteful remarks about the Bengali community and CAB president Sourav Ganguly. However, Gambhir has dismissed these claims as nothing more than a figment of Tiwary's imaginations, stating his love for the city that provided him with the opportunity to lead the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL.

"On Sunday, Manoj Tiwary stooped to a new low by claiming that I made racist remarks about Bengali community and my favourite India captain and one of the best cricketers I have played under Mr Sourav Ganguly whom I fondly call Dada. Let me categorically state here that these allegations are baseless and Tiwary's way of sensationalising things through his figment of imagination.

“First of all I am a proud Indian who respects all religions, communities and sexes. Then, ever since I have had the honour of leading Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL I have been humbled by the love and affection showered on my team and me by Bengali community.

“I have said in numerous interviews that Bengal is my second home and the support of the fans is the biggest X factor for KKR. I can't thank them enough for helping us win IPL title twice," the 34-year-old told the media.

Gambhir also expressed his admiration and respect for Sourav Ganguly, the man under whose leadership he made his debut in the Indian national team.

"Dada taught Indian cricket to play aggressive brand of cricket and modelled the team to win outside India. His contribution to Indian cricket is unparalleled. Personally, I made my India debut under Dada's leadership and can never forget the way he eased me into the team dressing room.

"Besides, I have picked up a lot of things from Dada's leadership ways and put them in practice for KKR. It is unfortunate that Dada's name was dragged in by Tiwary perhaps to gain cheap publicity," Gambhir added.