Why is there discrepancy, asks Sunil Gavaskar after Virat Kohli’s captaincy remarks

Virat Kohli made contradictory remarks on being stripped of the ODI captaincy. Consequently, Sunil Gavaskar has questioned the discrepancy from BCCI President Sourav Ganguly.

Indian Test skipper Virat Kohli has been stripped of the One-Day International (ODI) captaincy, which has now been bestowed upon senior opener Rohit Sharma. While the decision from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the national selectors came as a surprise, Kohli revealed that he wasn’t consulted before the decision was taken. His comments contradicted BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, as legendary former Indian skipper Sunil Gavaskar has questioned the discrepancy.

Earlier, Ganguly had voiced that he never wanted Kohli to step down from the leadership duties in the Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is). However, Kohli revealed that the BCCI never asked him to reconsider his decision. Moreover, he communicated that he was told just one and a half hours before the Test squad announcement for the upcoming South Africa tour that he would not be the ODI captain, leading to a brief discussion and Kohli eventually accepting it.

Upon Kohli’s revelation that there was no prior discussion and the contradiction with Ganguly’s statement, Gavaskar was seemingly annoyed at it. Speaking to India Today, he felt that Kohli’s comments do not bring the BCCI into the frame. He reckoned that Ganguly should be questioned as to how he got the impression of giving such a remark to Kohli.

“So, that’s the only thing. Ganguly is the BCCI president, and surely, he should be asked why this discrepancy is. He is probably the best person to ask about the discrepancy in what you seem to have to say and what the Indian captain has said,” Gavaskar estimated.

Earlier, reports suggested that Kohli was pondering on skipping the ODIs in SA to take a break, while some speculated that it might have something to do with his lost ODI captaincy and rift with Rohit. Nevertheless, Kohli clarified that these reasons were never the case at all. While he marked himself available for the ODIs, he also described that his relationship with Rohit stays healthy and professional.