India, Nov. 30 -- For a split second, the noise in the stadium seemed to fade. Rohit Sharma had just raised his bat for a fluent half-century, the cameras panned to the Indian dressing room, and there he was in the balcony - sunglasses on, clapping, taking it all in.

Cut back to the middle, and Virat Kohli, helmet on, was staring straight in that direction. No smile, just a long, unreadable look towards the dressing room where the head coach sat.

Between these two frames lies the drama that Indian cricket never quite escapes. Kohli and Gambhir have a layered history - from fiery IPL rivals to sharing the same dressing room in a new power structure where one is the team's totemic presence and the other, the man in charge of all the vital...