Virat Kohli's leadership has been shrouded in controversy ever since the maverick skipper announced his decision to relinquish the T20 captaincy. Earlier, the ODI skipper had citied workload as one of the reasons behind his decision. However, now it seems there’s more to his resignation than Kohli would have us believe.Since the tour of England, speculation had started that Virat would be removed from white ball captaincy. It was said that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was ‘unhappy’ with the skipper, but when the IANS spoke to BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal, he flatly denied the news. The very next day, the 32-year-old stylish batsman came forward and announced his decision to leave India’s T20 captaincy. He said that he would step down after the ICC T20 World Cup next month.
According to sources, such talk had been going on for the last six months and gathered pace after the World Test Championship debacle. Even the BCCI secretary Jay Shah, after Kohli’s announcement, stated that he had been discussing this matter with him for the last few months. Cricket experts, however, questioned the timing of his announcement. ‘Why did Kohli take such a decision just a month before the mega sporting spectacle?’ Did Kohli come to know that the BCCI was thinking of removing him from the top post? Was the workload really a factor? Why did the poster boy of the team suddenly lose his aura of invincibility? If sources are to be believed, the revolt against Kohli started within the team a few months ago. It has come to light that several senior players in the dressing room were miffed at the attitude of the ace cricketer.
His lack of form further didn’t help the cause, especially because Kohli had not scored a century in the past several innings across format — Test, ODI or T20s.His failing form has affected his decision-making, which has taken a toll on his relationship with the players. A senior player had complained to the BCCI secretary against Kohli for making him feel ‘insecure’. Kohli had reportedly accused the senior cricketer of showing ‘no intent’ during the World Test Championship final against New Zealand in Southampton, UK. If sources are to be believed, the name of Ravichandran Ashwin is now doing the rounds as one of the mutineers, but it has not been confirmed yet. But if one recalls how Ashwin was treated during the England series and Kohli’s insistence on not including him in the playing XI, despite the advice of experts, indicated something was brewing. Even chief coach Ravi Shastri had talked about playing Ashwin before the fourth Test. Kohl apparently ignored this advice.
