Ravi Shastri said that better communication was needed between the BCCI and Virat Kohli before the latter was sacked as India’s ODI captain in favour of Rohit Sharma last week.
Ravi Shastri was very close to India captain Virat Kohli during his four-year stint as head coach (Reuters Photo)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Virat Kohli was removed as India’s ODI captain and replaced with Rohit Sharma
- Sourav Ganguly claimed that he had urged Kohli to continue as the T20I skipper
- But Kohli contradicted the BCCI chief’s comments in a sensational press conference before leaving for South Africa
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri finally reacted to the captaincy controversy involving Virat Kohli and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), saying that the situation could have been handled in a better way than what eventually transpired earlier this month.
Kohli, who stepped down as the T20I skipper after the 20-over World Cup last month, was sacked as the ODI captain by the BCCI selectors post which he made some startling revelations in a press conference before departing for South Africa.
BCCI president Sourav Ganguly also got involved in the row when he said that he had personally asked Kohli not to step down from the post in T20Is. But Kohli contradicted Dada’s statement by saying that no such conversation took place between him and the board.
Kohli also revealed that he was informed about his removal from the ODI job less than two hours before the squad was announced for the South Africa series. Kohli’s comments last week brought to fore the underlying tension in his equation with the administrators.
“Virat has given his side of the story, it needs the board president to give his side of the story. With good communication, the situation could have been handled better,” Shastri was quoted as saying by Indian Express.
There was talk of BCCI asking chairman of selectors Chetan Sharma to address the media after Kohli’s explosive press conference but the BCCI eventually refrained from making any counter statements.
Kohli is currently in Centurion, preparing to lead India in the three-Test series against South Africa starting December 26.
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