Published: Jul 19, 2017, 07:05 PM (IST)
Edited: Jul 19, 2017, 07:09 PM (IST)
Much has been written and talked about the whole coach-skipper fiasco. BCCI was hit by the infamous Virat Kohli-Anil Kumble spat. Soon after Kumble resigned, Kohli’s request for Ravi Shastri as India coach was approved by Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC). Ravichandran Ashwin, who shared a good rapport with Kumble, finally opened up and spoke about the ill-timed episode in Indian cricket. Ashwin was of the view that selection of coach and skipper comes under the purview of the BCCI, and no one should have any objection over it. Shastri: People like me, Kumble will come and go
Speaking in an exclusive interview to sportstarlive.com, Ashwin said, “The existing situation is such that it is between three people; captain, coach and probably the administration. Unless and until, as Virat said, we are asked, we don’t make a statement or comment. To me it was between the BCCI, Virat and Anilbhai and now it’s between the BCCI, Virat and Ravi. I don’t even figure anywhere in this and to be able to comment on that is definitely out of bounds.”
“But as far as I am concerned the stakeholders of the game is: captain is appointed by the BCCI and the coach by the BCCI,” he added.
Speaking about Ravi Shastri and Kumble he said, “I do not have an opinion, but whatever I have worked with both Ravi and Anil – and I am not being diplomatic here, both of them have different strengths – [I feel] they are good in their own ways. Ravibhai is all the time positive; he’s exuberant and he infuses so much energy into you and Anil is very methodical, he produces a lot of different dimensions that one bowler can ask for.”
“I love the conversations with Anil and that’s because of the fact that we share a similar kind of skill, trade and all that. It’s been very exciting and the one thing that I learned in the exciting journey of cricket is that nothing or no one is constant. Things keep changing, and if you want to stay at that level you have to put things behind and keep moving on,” Ashwin concluded.
