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Cricket Players'Virat has given his side of the story': Shastri feels Ganguly should present his version on BCCI-Kohli captaincy saga
Shastri also opened up on his relationship with Kohli and heaped praise on the player's “hunger and self-confidence.”
It's been a few days since Virat Kohli cleared the air about the change in white-ball leadership, his relationship with Rohit Sharma, and availability for the South Africa white-ball series. The much-talked pre-departure press conference led to a public uproar, and remarks from former cricketers and pundits aren't helping in dousing the fire.
Kohli contradicted BCCI president Sourav Ganguly's statement, saying that he wasn't told to reconsider his move of relinquishing the captaincy. The current Test skipper didn't mince his words, hinting at an underlying tension between him and the administrators of the Indian board. Ganguly's response also created a stir. The BCCI chief said that the board will handle the matter internally and urged the public to 'let it go'.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has weighed in on the Kohli-Ganguly saga, saying that the matter could have been handled in a better way. He also feels Ganguly should present "his side of the story".
"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 told the Indian Express.
Shastri also opened up on his relationship with Kohli and heaped praise on the player's "hunger and self-confidence". The Shastri-Kohli era came to an end after India's group-stage exit from the T20 World Cup 2021. Despite an empty trophy cabinet, Shastri signed off with notable Test wins in away conditions. Under him, the Kohli-led unit in 2018-19 became the first Asian Test team to beat Australia in their backyard.
"I see a lot of myself in Virat, drive, hunger and, self-confidence. My relationship with Virat was fantastic, two like-minded people going about their job," Shastri said.
Under Shastri, India also managed to establish dominance in SENA countries, clinching the T20I bilateral series in Australia, England, New Zealand, and South Africa. India also brushed aside West Indies (away) and Sri Lanka (away) in the shortest format of the game.
A lot of things have changed since Shastri's exit from the picture. He was replaced by batting legend Rahul Dravid before Kohli was stripped of ODI captaincy, with Rohit Sharma taking over the mantle of the white-ball captaincy ahead of the South Africa tour.
