Published 17:22 IST, February 4th 2023
R Sridhar opens up on how Ravi Shastri dealt with Kohli-Rohit camp saga post WC 2019 exit
Former fielding coach R Sridhar has opened up on some of the incidents from the Indian dressing room which happened after the 2019 ODI World Cup.
Former Team India fielding coach R Sridhar has opened up on one of the most interesting cases from the Indian team dressing room after the 2019 ODI World Cup. The former India fielding coach in his book 'Coaching Beyond: My Days with the Indian Cricket Team' has spoken on many issues that gained headlines after the 2019 ODI World Cup.
R Sridhar said, "After the 2019 World Cup, there was a lot of bad press about what allegedly happened in the dressing room during our campaign and following our loss to New Zealand in the semifinal. We were informed that there was a Rohit camp and a Virat camp, that someone had unfollowed another on social media – stuff that could be unsettling if you allowed it to fester."
"We landed in the United States some 10 days after the World Cup for a T20 series against the West Indies in Lauderhill. One of the first things Ravi did on arrival was to call Virat and Rohit to his room and impress upon them that for Indian cricket to be healthy, they needed to be on the same page. 'Whatever happened on social media, that's all fine, but you two are the most senior cricketers so this must stop,' Ravi said in his typical non-nonsense manner. 'I want you to put all this behind us and get together for us to move forward'", Sridhar added.
R Sridhar also spoke about the way head coach Ravi Shastri handled the situation. Once Shastri had intervened between Virat and Rohit both the players had set the reset button. Shastri was there to handle the situation and he was the only one who could have done that. After Shastri's intervention, the relationship between Rohit and Kohli slightly improved and both players started to be happy with the Team and their own success.
"You could see that things started to get better after that. Ravi's action was swift, simple and decisive. It was just getting both the guys together, sitting them down and making them talk. Ravi didn't waste any time in doing so. That he felt encouraged to call the white-ball captain and his deputy to clearly state his mind is indicative of the kind of atmosphere we had facilitated. That Virat and Rohit saw reason in Ravi's stance and immediately got down to business was the ultimate tribute to our culture 'one for all, all for one, but team above all'", Sridhar said.
Updated 14:34 IST, February 5th 2023