We Have Coped Up Really Well After Anil Kumble's Exit, Says Sanjay Bangar

It is quite hard to believe that only a week has passed since India’s disastrous loss to Pakistan in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy. Given the enormity of that defeat, it was very much expected that the coming couple of weeks would be totally dominated with the discussions of India’s stunning capitulations against the lowest-ranked side in the tournament. However, the talks of the defeat has taken the back seat in the past one week and instead the last few days have been dominated with the Anil Kumble‘s shocking resignation from the post of Team India head coach.

Just a couple of days after the Champions Trophy ended, Kumble stepped down from his post and dropped a huge bombshell in the statement he posted on Twitter. The former India skipper, who was set to accompany the team to West Indies for the ongoing limited-overs series, revealed he decided to walk away after being informed of captain Virat Kohli‘s reservations over his style of functioning, thus bringing an end to the episode that had begun with reports of a rift between him and the captain during the buildup of the Champions Trophy.

Kumble’s revelations has certainly surprised one and all including the players but India’s batting coach, Sanjay Bangar has insisted that the players are coping well and slowly getting accustomed to the circumstances. At the same time, the former India international admitted that Kumble’s departure has left a lacuna in the team.

“We are professionals and such things are part and parcel of any organisation where changes happen. The support staff and the players have shown a lot of professionalism in compartmentalizing the issues and so far we have coped up really well,” Bangar said.

“Everyone’s contributed towards it and as I said earlier, when you part ways it’s never easy. You need to accept that at times such things are going to happen, have happened in the past. But what is of paramount importance is that Indian cricket should keep moving forward and the performances of the team shouldn’t really be affected in any manner,” he added.

Under the Kumble-Kohli regime, India enjoyed a highly successful spell, winning Test series against West Indies, New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia in addition to winning limited-overs series against New Zealand and England. The team also made it to the final of the Champions Trophy before Kumble decided to part ways with the team after realising that his partnership with the captain was ‘untenable’.

And while Bangar admitted that the team enjoyed a successful time under Kumble, he said the presence of experienced players like Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli will fill the void left by the outgoing coach.

“Yes, Anil was doubling up. There were a lot of positive results under him. We all know that the team enjoyed a lot of success. The void, there is definitely a bit of lacuna but the experience that this team possesses – when you have a Mahendra Singh Dhoni, a Yuvraj Singh and Virat Kohli, who’ve played close to 700 international games, they’re doing a lot of work behind the scenes, they are guiding the players,” Bangar said.