"It's not like Virat Kohli found it out through the media; what more do you want?" - Sunil Gavaskar defends BCCI
Sunil Gavaskar has tenaciously defended the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) amid the uproar following Virat Kohli's explosive press conference on Wednesday. Kohli revealed that he was only informed an hour and a half before his sacking from the ODI captaincy without any prior communication on the matter since stepping down from the T20I leadership.
Speaking to Sports Tak, Gavaskar argued that getting a courtesy call from Chetan Sharma, the chairman of the five-member Selection Committee, should be enough. The former captain went ahead to ask what more Kohli wanted if he knew about the decision beforehand. Gavaskar said:
"He was told before the public announcement, right? It's not like he found out through the media announcement... The chairman of the Selection Committee told him before the announcement so he (Chetan Sharma) gave him (Kohli) that courtesy. It's not like Kohli found out through the media that he's been removed from the captaincy. So he did know. What more do you want?"
Virat Kohli says there was no prior communication on the ODI captaincy shift.
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Notably, Kohli himself didn't question the selectors' decision. He even said that he had kept the door open for them to drop him from the ODI and Test captaincy if they found it necessary. However, some observers have cried foul about the kerfuffle, questioning the lack of accountability and 'mistreatment' from the selectors.
"I don't understand what's the controversy in this" - Sunil Gavaskar on Virat Kohli's ODI sacking
Honestly, this is far from being the worst controversy in BCCI history.
Gavaskar isn't able to understand the reason behind the controversy. He observed how the "final decision" regarding all selection matters had been of the committee, reiterating that selectors informing him before the announcement should suffice.
Gavaskar said:
"I don't understand what's the controversy in this. If he was informed by the chairman of the Selection Committee 1.5 hours before the announcement - when they were selecting the Test team they would have surely consulted Kohli. Perhaps he would have also been present in the Zoom meeting. And I know that even today the Indian captain doesn't get a vote in [the Selection Committee]. He can be present there and give his opinion but the final decision is of the 5 Selection Committee members."
He added:
"When the selection for the Test team for South Africa would have concluded, after that - this means after the main agenda of the meeting - he must have been informed that he won't be the ODI captain. If he has been informed about this then I don't understand what's the controversy in all this."
Kohli has also confirmed his participation in the entire tour of South Africa. He'll be back in action when the first Test kicks off on December 26 in Centurion.