No rift in the Indian team, says Choudhary

Addressing the press at Edgbaston on Thursday, while the team trained behind him, the acting BCCI secretary denied outright that there were differences between Anil Kumble and Virat Kohli.

Has India captain Virat Kohli taken cudgels against Head Coach Anil Kumble?

 

Amitabh Choudhary insists that all is well in the Indian camp. Addressing the press at Edgbaston here on Thursday, while the team trained behind him, the acting BCCI secretary denied outright that there were differences between Anil Kumble and Virat Kohli. I’m not aware of any (rift). It’s purely in the realm of imagination. I don't see any problem at all,” he said.

He spoke to the players frequently, Choudhary added, vehemently denying that there had been any complaints from them about Kumble’s style of functioning. “The mood is upbeat,” he said.

 

India boasts a stellar record since Kumble’s appointment as coach, failing to win only one out of nine series in the last 11 months: a two-game T20I contest against the West Indies, where one match was rained off. Choudhary stated that he was happy with his performance. “Not only me, the whole country is happy with Kumble. However, the ones who will make a decision are the Cricket Advisory Committee,” he said.

Why were new applications for the coaching job invited then, he was asked. “It’s a very simple issue. The appointment which was made last year was after a process had been gone through. And it was made for a period. That period is coming to an end, so the BCCI is just following the process. If we don’t follow a process it’s not supposed to be good. If you follow a process, it’s supposed to be good, isn’t it?”

The secretary dismissed suggestions that he and BCCI General Manager (Cricket Operations) M.V. Sridhar had arrived to engage in discussions with Kumble. “I was going to come (for the Champions Trophy) anyway. Who says I was not scheduled to come? It was planned from long back. Kamaal ki baat karte hain …”

Choudhary defended the decision to invite applications for the coaching job days before the Champions Trophy. “You can see the full calendar and tell me at what position there was a free slot,” he said. “After one tournament, there is another, then another series, home series, away series. Something is always on throughout the year. This is a process which is well defined. The Cricket Advisory Committee is seized of the matter and will deal with it.”

There was no smoke without fire, Choudhary was told. He retorted: “I don’t see any smoke either.”