Virat Kohli has revealed a piece of shocking news on how his T20I captaincy ended, challenging BCCI president Sourav Ganguly’s claims. Previously, Ganguly claimed that he has already individually begged Kohli not to relinquish the T20I captaincy; but, Virat has clarified that no one had requested him not to relinquish the position.
Virat had a virtual news conference before the squad’s departure to South Africa, addressing a number of concerns, including his ODI captaincy and the purported split with Rohit Sharma. Kohli used the occasion to explain that Ganguly had not urged him to resign the captaincy in the T20I format, as per DNA India reports.
Virat Kohli statement on BCCI decision
Kohli stated, “When I approached BCCI about the T20 captaincy, it was received well by them and I was not told to not leave the T20 captaincy. I was contacted 1.5 hours before selection committee meet. The chief selector discussed the Test team. Before ending the call, the selectors told me I won’t be ODI captain and I was fine. There was no prior communication,”.
Virat Kohli also revealed that he was notified of his replacement as India’s ODI captain just one and a half hours before the team selection for the South Africa series on December 8. During his conference with the selection committee, Kohli claimed that the Chetan Sharma-led committee had not communicated previously with him regarding a decision to have Rohit Sharma succeed him as captain of the 50-over side. Kohli said, “I was told the five selectors have decided I will not be the ODI captain, to which I replied, ‘okay, fine’, and in the selection call afterwards, we chatted about it briefly. That’s what happened. There was no communication prior to that at all.”
Kohli made his announcement to resign as T20I captain on September 16 in the run-up to the T20 World Cup, expressing workload concerns. He did, nevertheless, indicate an interest in continuing captaining the Test and ODI teams. On December 9, BCCI President Sourav Ganguly told PTI that the board had asked Kohli to contemplate handing up the captaincy of the short format, which Kohli denied.
Do dirty Politics sway in Indian cricket?
The previous week was filled with controversy within Indian cricket. On December 8, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) surprised sports fans by choosing Rohit Sharma as ODI captain. The seasoned opener took over from Virat Kohli, and the cricket world was divided as a result. Going to make matters worse, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly revealed that he ‘requested’ Kohli not stand down as T20I captain, according to Times of India news.
Because the 33-year-old refused, the BCCI selectors opted to remove him as ODI captain because they didn’t want two distinct captains in fair-skinned cricket. Kohli stepped down as India’s T20I captain following the T20 World Cup 2021 last month. Previously, the veteran claimed that he will lead the way the team in the other two forms.
The recent series of events got fans in a tizzy because they can’t understand how the BCCI president and the former ODI captain is making opposing public remarks. Moreover, as seen by Kohli’s remark, the skipper was not notified of the captaincy change beforehand, which might indicate a communication breakdown. On their trip to South Africa, Team India will play three Tests and as many One-Day Internationals (ODIs).
