Long-time Indian cricket player Amit Mishra, known for taking many wickets in the Indian Premier League, has shared some surprising details about his experience playing under Virat Kohli in the national team. Mishra also played when MS Dhoni was the captain and said Dhoni was always straightforward with him about whether he would be playing or not. But Mishra feels that Kohli was not as clear, even when asked directly.
During an interview on Shubhankar Mishra’s YouTube show ‘Unplugged’, Mishra made a bold statement. He said that being skilled isn’t the only requirement to stay in the Indian team; being liked by others is also crucial.
“Being liked is very important for team selection. Simply playing well isn’t enough. The team captain always chooses the players. I had a great relationship with MS Dhoni. I asked him twice why I wasn’t being chosen, and he said it was because I didn’t fit the team’s needs,” he explained.
“I was informed that I was being given a break. I didn’t request it. I had only played fewer than 10 Test matches at that point, so why would I ask for a break? To be honest, I didn’t feel I could question Dhoni. I did ask the coach, and he told me to talk to Dhoni, but I didn’t feel it was right to do so. I asked the coach again, and he just said they were giving me a break,” he continued.
Mishra then shared the most disheartening experience of his career, explaining that he was made to take a break after suffering a knee injury. Although the policy was that fully recovered injured players would automatically be picked for the team, this didn’t apply to Mishra..
The toughest moment in my career was when I got a knee injury five years back. It occurred during a game. Just before that, I had been the best player in a series and the best in a match against New Zealand. Back then, if you got hurt while playing, you were supposed to get another chance. This happened to players like Wriddhiman Saha, Anil Kumble, and Hardik Pandya, but it didn’t happen for me,” Mishra explained.
Mishra had a chance to talk to Kohli during an IPL match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru about his position on the team. The experienced spinner said that Virat promised to check with the team management and get back to him, but he never did..
“In the IPL, our final game was against RCB. I wanted to know about my future in cricket, so I asked him for a straightforward answer. He replied, ‘Mishy brother, I’ll check and tell you.’ Virat Kohli supported me during my return to cricket in the series against Sri Lanka in 2016. I was performing well, and India needed a leg-spinner who could play in Sri Lanka. When I returned, he told me, ‘starting today, you’ll work on your fitness with me.’ I explained that I couldn’t lift heavy weights like him, but I could run and do other exercises. Later, I got hurt, so I asked him again, but I never received a clear response. I sent him a message. He read it and said ‘I’ll let you know,’ but he never did,” he revealed.
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