The alleged rift between the captain and vice-captain of the Indian cricket team may have just intensified, with skipper Virat Kohli opting to avoid Monday’s pre-series press conference, as the boys in blue gear up to play a series of matches with the West Indies.
Virat Kohli, who is alleged to be at odds with Rohit Sharma, will be skipping the conference traditionally held before the start of a major series. ANI reported a BCCI source saying, “There will be no pre-departure press conference by the Indian team leaving for the West Indies. There is no window for a press conference ahead of the departure. We tried but it was not possible.”
Earlier, multiple news reports suggested that Kohli and his wife Anushka Sharma were having a rift with Rohit Sharma and his family. These reports have been denied by the BCCI, but were fuelled by leaks from the dressing room and some slightly cryptic social media behaviour.
In early July, it was decided that the Indian captain Virat Kohli and the team coach Ravi Shastri would be in charge of deciding the travel schedule of Wives and Girlfriends (WAGs). Given that Kohli is married, this was criticized as a case of conflict of interest, but the decision stood nonetheless.
During the World Cup, news reports suggested that a “senior member” of the Indian team had flouted the rule allowing no more than 15 days of permissible stay with a wife or girlfriend. The player had requested permission to extend the duration of stay, which the Committee of Administrators (CoA) denied. But, the player then went on to flout the rule for the entirety of the seven-week period of the World Cup. It is unknown as to who this player was.
Following India’s loss, a video circulated of Rakhi Sawant blaming Kohli and Sharma for treating the World Cup like a honeymoon.
According to the rumours, neither Kohli nor Sharma sides have interacted since the World Cup semifinal at Manchester. At the time, Sharma had posted on Twitter, “We failed to deliver as a team when it mattered, 30 minutes of poor cricket yesterday & that snatched away our chance for the cup. My heart is heavy as I’m sure yours is too. The support away from home was incredible. Thank you all for painting most of UK blue wherever we played in.”
Dainik Jagran had reported a split in the Indian dressing room following the match against New Zealand, with players unhappy over favouritism in the team and an alleged talking-down that the bowlers received.
It is a rift that has not yet erupted over social media, so far, with the only sign of disharmony being Rohit Sharma ‘unfollowing’ Anushka Sharma on Instagram. In turn, Anushka posted a cryptic message on her Instagram Stories, stating, “A wise man once said nothing. Only truth can shake hands with silence in a mess of false appearances.” Both Kohli and Anushka continue to follow Rohit.
BCCI officials have denied the presence of any rift, with the Committee of Administrators telling the media “These are all stories created by you guys,” according to PTI. The CoA have also denied rumours of the BCCI mulling split-captaincy, where Kohli would be put in charge of tests and Sharma for limited-overs.
India will play three T20s with the West Indies, on August 3, 4 and 6. This will be followed by three ODIs on August 8, 11, and 14 and two tests between August 22-26 and August 30 and September 3.