Cricket
'Shouldn't speak against board': Former Indian players question Virat Kohli's 'shocking' revelations
Virat Kohli's contradiction of BCCI President Sourav Ganguly has led to some former Indian players llike Kapil Dev to criticise his act, but Kohli has also found support - from the likes of Tabraiz Shamsi.
Virat Kohli was last seen in action as captain for Team India against South Africa. (BCCI)
Virat Kohli's straight-talking press conference from Wednesday - where he contradicted the official timeline of events leading to his removal from ODI captaincy - has earned him some critics.
Former Indian cricketer Kapil Dev has said Kohli should have thought about his commitment to the national team instead of stoking a controversy before a tour. However, some players, like South Africa's Tabraiz Shamsi, have admired Kohli's stance.
"I am a big fan of Kohli but I don't think any player should speak against the BCCI President or the board. When I was taken out as skipper I was also hurt but remember u are playing for ur country. Nothing matters more. The selectors may not have played as much cricket as him but they have the right to take a call on his captaincy. You don't have to inform anyone, even Virat, about anything," Kapil Dev told ABP News.
"Aap situation ko control kijiye, behtar ye hai ki aap desh ke baare mein sochiye (Please control the situation and it's better to think about the country now)," said the former skipper who played 134 Tests between 1978 and 1994 and took 434 wickets along with making 5248 runs.
"Jo galat hai woh kal pata chal hi jayega but I don't think it is right to stoke a controversy before a tour," he said.
Former Indian selector Sarandeep Singh termed Kohli's press conference as 'shocking'.
"It is the duty of the selection committee to select the players and appoint the captain. BCCI does not play any role in the selection process. The statements given by Virat in the press conference today were a bit shocking. Things shouldn't have gone wrong the way they did," Sarandeep Singh told ANI.
Pragyan Ojha, Kohli's former teammate, and the representative of the Indian Cricketers Association, the officially recognised body for former Indian cricketers, in the IPL governing council. also seemed unimpressed.
"Unnecessary! Hope the focus will be back on work. #IndianCricket," Ojha wrote in Hindi on social media platform Koo. On Twitter, he wrote a cryptic tweet on knowing 'what to show' and 'reputation;.
However, Kohli did find support from India as well as abroad.
South African spinner Tabraiz Shamsi, who is currently ranked as the best T20I bowler in the world, lauded Kohli for not siding with Ganguly's statement.
Sunil Gavaskar also said the onus is now on Ganguly to clear the air on whose version of events is correct.
Yes, he (Ganguly) is the BCCI president and surely he should be asked why there is this discrepancy. He is probably the best person to ask about the discrepancy in what you seem to have to say and what the Indian captain has said," he told India Today.
The Indian Test team, led by Kohli, departed for South Africa on Thursday for a three-match series beginning at Centurion on December 26.
