‘Tense atmosphere, no one backing players’ BCCI official reveals tussle between Kohli and former coach Kumble

Former BCCI administrator Ratnakar Shetty has claimed that the events leading up to Anil Kumble resigning as Team India head coach in 2021 were ‘shocking’ and that there was a breakdown in the relationship between the legendary spinner and the then captain Virat Kohli.

In 2017, less than a year after taking over as the head coach of Indian men’s cricket team, Kumble stepped down in a dramatic turn of events citing ‘untenable’ relationship with Kohli.

“The events leading up to the resignation of Anil Kumble as coach of the men’s team after the ICC Champions Trophy final in June 2017 showcased the murkiness that had steadily crept into the corridors of the Cricket Centre,” The Indian Express quoted Shetty as writing in his book On Board: Test.Trial.Triumph. My years in BCCI.

Shetty wrote that Kohli, who was the Indian captain across formats in 2017, was not happy with Kumble for not standing up for players and creating a tense dressing room atmosphere.

“It was obvious that some people did not want Anil to continue as coach,” Shetty wrote. “The captain and coach did not appear to be on the same wavelength and it seemed that the captain had the upper hand.”

He continued, “I learnt later about a meeting that took place in London before the final of the Champions Trophy, which we lost to Pakistan. This meeting was attended by Virat, Anil, Johri, Amitabh Choudhary and Dr Sridhar. Apparently, Virat was not happy with Anil ‘for not standing up for the players and creating a tense atmosphere in the dressing room’, among other things.”

Kumble’s resignation came after India’s one-sided defeat to Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy final in 2017. Ravi Shastri succeeded him full-time into the role and oversaw one of the most productive phases in history of Indian cricket.