I Feel Very Sad For Anil Kumble, Says Mohammad Azharuddin On Ex-Coach's Acrimonious Exit

Former India skipper Mohammad Azharuddin has criticised the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the way they handled the matter between former head coach Anil Kumble and captain Virat Kohli which ultimately led to the former stepping down from his post.

The buildup to the Champions Trophy was marred by reports of a rift between Virat Kohli and Anil Kumble. However, Kohli had quashed those rumours during his pre-match press conference before the tournament-opener.

But two days after India’s campaign ended with a defeat against Pakistan in the final, Kumble dropped the bombshell by stepping down as the coach and also revealing the reason behind his sudden decision. In a statement posted on Twitter, the former India skipper made it crystal-clear that he chose to walk away after being informed of Kohli’s reservation over his style of functioning. Kumble had also said that his partnership with Kohli was ‘untenable’.

The whole episode ended on a disappointing note as Kumble’s highly successful tenure came to a sad end and later Ravi Shastri was named his replacement. The Cricket Advisory Committee, comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, had sought Virat Kohli’s inputs before selecting the new coach and Azharuddin feels that board should not have let the captain to interfere in the process.

“I always feel the BCCI should be the body which appoints the coach. When I was playing, it never used to happen (this way)… you can’t pick and choose. The BCCI used to appoint the coach (and) it was not the captain’s prerogative. But now things have changed,” Azharuddin, who played for India from 1983-84 to 2000, said on the sidelines of a promotional event.

“Captain is the main person in the dressing room because he runs the team and is the boss on the field. He should be given whatever he wants. Sometimes you want some players, which sometimes you get, sometimes you don’t. You can’t just say you can’t play since you didn’t get your players, you have to carry on,” he added

Azharuddin further expressed his disappointment over the way Kumble was treated in the whole episode. Under Kumble,  India reached the pinnacle of the ICC Test rankings, after winning series against West Indies, New Zealand, England, Australia and Bangladesh. He also guided the team to the limited-over series win over New Zealand and England in addition to the runners-up finish in the Champions Trophy. But his successful stint came to a disappointing end when he decided to walk away after being told about Kohli’s reservations over his methods.

“I feel very sad for him. It is sad something like this happened to Anil. Knowing Anil, I don’t think he is that type (over-bearing or a hard taskmaster). Maybe, he thought it is better to be away from it than losing self-respect. He took the right decision.”

“You do have ups and downs with the coach because every time you won’t agree with the coach or he won’t agree with you,” Azharuddin said, referring to differences between Kumble and Kohli. “There has to be the right balance. You have to work in tandem.”