How Ravi Shastri Handled Rift Between Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli? R Sridhar Makes Starling Revelations

New Delhi: India skipper Rohit Sharma and former captain Virat Kohli have been the backbone of the Indian cricket team for more than a decade now. The two stalwarts have taken Indian cricket to great heights. The two have been great admirers of each other and share a very healthy bond. However, there were rumours of their rift after India's shock exit in the semi-final of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

Multiple reports were circulating on social media about the alleged rift between the two senior players and that they have unfollowed each other on social media. Ravi Shastri, the then coach of the Indian team, had brushed all the speculations but now the former India fielding coach R Sridhar has presented a different side of the story, In his book, 'Coaching Beyond: My Days with the Indian Cricket Team', Sridhar revealed how Shastri brought Rohit and Kohli on terms.

"After the 2019 World Cup, there was a lot of bad press about what allegedly happened in the dressing room during our campaign and following our loss to New Zealand in the semifinal. We were informed that there was a Rohit camp and a Virat camp, that someone had unfollowed another on social media stuff that could be unsettling if you allowed it to fester," Sridhar wrote in his book.

"We landed in the United States (US) some 10 days after the World Cup for a T20 series against West Indies in Lauderhill. One of the first things Ravi did on arrival was to call Virat and Rohit to his room and impress upon them that for Indian cricket to be healthy, they needed to be on the same page. 'Whatever happened on social media, that's all fine, but you two are the most senior cricketers so this must stop,' Ravi said in his typical no-nonsense manner. 'I want you to put all this behind and get together for us to move forward'".

Sridhar revealed that Kohli and Rohit were quick to understand Shastri's stance and immediately got down to business, adding that their relationship has improved significantly over the years.

"You could see that things started to get better after that. Ravi's action was swift, simple and decisive. It was just getting both the guys together, sitting them down and making them talk. Ravi didn't waste any time in doing so. That he felt encouraged to call the white-ball captain and his deputy to clearly state his mind is indicative of the kind of atmosphere we had facilitated. That Virat and Rohit saw reason in Ravi's stance and immediately got down to business was the mutilate tribute to our culture 'one for all, all for one, but team above all'," stated Sridhar.