In the aftermath of the T20 World Cup 2021, the cricketing world witnessed a seismic shift in Indian cricket leadership. Virat Kohli, the stalwart captain, surprised fans by stepping down from T20I captaincy while expressing his desire to continue leading India in ODIs and Tests.
However, the plot thickened just before the South Africa ODIs as Kohli found himself abruptly removed from the ODI captaincy as well. The reins were handed over to Rohit Sharma, who was now in charge of both the T20I and ODI squads. The rationale provided was that having separate captains for white-ball formats was untenable.
Kohli’s discontent was intensified during the press conference where he revealed the lack of proper communication regarding his removal. This revelation ignited a social media firestorm, with fans and pundits dissecting the decision and its implications for Indian cricket. The absence of transparent communication became a focal point of criticism.
Behind this leadership shuffle, reports surfaced, pointing towards a strained relationship between Virat Kohli and the then BCCI President Sourav Ganguly. Speculations were rife that Ganguly had a strong inclination to propel Rohit Sharma into the captaincy role, and this desire became the driving force behind Kohli’s abrupt removal.
Sourav Ganguly breaks silence of Virat Kohli and his removal from captaincy
The repercussions of this saga extended beyond limited-overs cricket. Following the Test series against South Africa, Kohli took a significant step and stepped down from the Test captaincy as well. The once-united front of Indian cricket seemed marred by internal discord, leaving fans and the cricketing fraternity perplexed.
Ganguly chose the platform of “Dadagiri Unlimited Season 10,” a popular reality show, to share his side of the story. He reiterated, “I didn’t remove Virat from captaincy. I have told this a lot of times. He was not interested to lead in T20Is. So, after he made that decision, I told him, if you’re not interested to lead in T20Is, it’s better if you step down from entire white-ball cricket. Let there be a white-ball captain and a red-ball captain.”
Ganguly’s revelations shed light on the complexities of leadership dynamics within the Indian cricketing hierarchy. The perceived feud between Kohli and Ganguly was not a power play, as many believed, but rather a clash of priorities. Ganguly’s push for a specialized captain for each format collided with Kohli’s desire to focus on Tests and ODIs.
