Former Indian pacer Chetan Sharma, who is Chairman of the All-India Selection Committee, has made a startling revelation about former India captain and star batter Virat Kohli in a sting operation. According to the 57-year-old former fast bowler, Virat had begun to view himself as more important than the game, which did not sit well with the BCCI. Taking advantage of his lacklustre form in 2021, the BCCI then removed him from the position of India's ODI captain.
Virat Kohli announced his decision to relinquish the T20I captaincy following the conclusion of the Men's T20 World Cup in 2021, yet he still desired to remain the captain of the ODI and Test teams. Nevertheless, he stepped down from the ODI captaincy in December 2021.
According to Chief Selector Chetan, the BCCI was not pleased with Virat Kohli as he had begun to view himself as more important than the game itself. Consequently, they seized the opportunity to replace him with Rohit Sharma during his difficult 2021 season, even though he was not their first choice.
"Jab player thoda bada ho jaye to usko lagta hai ki vo bahut bada ho gaya, board se bhi bada ho gaya. Toh fir usko lagta hai ki mere ko toh koi kuch kar he nahi sakta. Mere bina to cricket band ho jayega India mein. Kabhi hua hai? Bade bade aaye, bade bade gaye, cricket to wahi ka wahi rehta hai. Toh vo usne uss samay hit maarne ki kosish kari president ko (When a player grows in stature, he starts thinking that he was become very big, bigger than the board even. Then he starts thinking that nobody can stand against him. Without him, the cricket will stop. But has that ever happened? Many big players came and went, but cricket is still there; it remains the same. He wanted to confront the then-BCCI president), Sharma was heard saying in a sting video that has gone viral on the internet.
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According to Sharma, the then BCCI president Sourav Ganguly had implored Virat to reconsider his decision to resign from the T20 captaincy, yet he misled the media by claiming that no such suggestion had been made to him.
"I was present in the selection meeting. Kohli was clearly told by the BCCI president to re-think his decision to quit the T20I captaincy. We all told him to reconsider his decision. But he lied to the media when he said that he got no such suggestion from anyone in the board," Sharma said.
Here’s how fans reacted on Chetan Sharma’s shocking revelations:
Chetan Sharma's claims have become a major topic of discussion among the cricketing community. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is expected to take decisive action in the coming days. Meanwhile, the Rohit Sharma-led senior men's team is gearing up for the second Test against Australia in New Delhi, following their impressive victory in the series opener in Nagpur, where they triumphed by an emphatic innings and 132 runs.
READ| 'Ganguly never liked Kohli': 5 shocking revelations made by BCCI chief selector Chetan Sharma in sting operation
