'Anil Kumble Scolded Players Like Children,' Say Sources About Fallout With Virat Kohli
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| Virat Kohli and Anil Kumble stopped talking 6 months ago |
The Anil Kumble-Virat Kohli spat has been a trending topic
since the former tweeted his resignation
as India coach highlighting his reasons for quitting the high-profile
job - among them that Captain Kohli had "reservations" with his
style. But with skipper Virat
Kohli prepping for the series with the West Indies, his side of the
story is yet to be heard. Sources have told NDTV that there were sharp
differences and several reasons why to two were almost destined to fall apart.
For one, they alleged, "Anil Kumble treated players like school
kids."
The coach reportedly gave the players a
"dressing-down" after the team lost the ICC Champions Trophy final to
Pakistan at The Oval on June 18. The team members, who were feeling terrible
about the loss in any case, felt that their coach was scolding them like
children and not treating them like professionals, the sources said. The
captain, they said, is very possessive about his team in the dressing room and
he was upset at the way Kumble spoke to them.
Kumble stepped down as the head coach of the India cricket
team on Tuesday and in soon tweeted a long letter, listing his reasons and the
circumstances under which he had left the post. The Indian team was on its way
to the West Indies at that moment and till now, there has been no response from
Kohli on this. While the news of differences between the coach and captain had
been doing the rounds for quite a long time, even the Board of Control for
Cricket in India (BCCI) was taken by surprise by reports that the two were not
on talking terms for the 'last six months'.
Nevertheless, the rift was a very defined one and the
sources also told NDTV that there were several reasons why to two were almost
destined to fall apart.
Kumble wanted to bat first in the final
The source also said that the Indian skipper opted to field
in the final but the coach wanted to bat first and put runs on the board. But
we all know that Kohli's decision prevailed.
Control over the dressing room
The source elaborated that the two had major issues about
dressing room control. The coach wanted players to follow his template -- of a
regimented lifestyle -- which Kohli rejected because the current crop feels
they multi-task.
Differences began during Australia series
According to the source, the differences first cropped up
during the Australia series earlier this year when Kumble decided to field
left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav in place of the injured Kohli in the
fourth and final Test at Dharamsala. It seems Kohli was not aware of Yadav's
selection.
The Indian cricket team on Wednesday reached Port of Spain
(Trinidad) for a limited-overs series against the West Indies. The first ODI is
scheduled for June 23 (Friday).
The cricketing fraternity is still waiting to hear from
Kohli on the issue, but the Indian captain has been silent so far.
(With inputs from Rica Roy)
TOPICS : India Cricket Team Virat Kohli Anil Kumble The
Oval, London ICC Champions Trophy 2017 Cricket
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