After the India semi-final defeat from the 2019 ICC World Cup, former India fielding coach R Sridhar disclosed that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have split the team into two camps. After India’s elimination from the 2019 ICC World Cup semifinals, there were rumours that vice captain Rohit and then-captain Kohli had a falling out.
R Sridhar said that the team was divided into Rohit Camp and Virat Camp and eventually Ravi Shastri had to come to sort out the matter.
The former Indian fielding coach R Srridhar wrote this incident in his book – ‘Coaching Beyond’. The player revealed,” “After the 2019 World Cup, there was a lot of bad press about what allegedly happened in the dressing room during our campaign and following our loss to New Zealand in the semifinal. We were informed that there was a Rohit camp and a Virat camp, that someone had unfollowed another on social media – stuff that could be unsettling if you allowed it to fester.”
Sridhar added that after the World Cup, India toured the West Indies, and the team’s then-head coach Ravi Shastri called Rohit and Kohli into his room to settle the matter in his own style.
He further added,”We landed in the United States (US) some 10 days after the World Cup for a T20 series against West Indies in Lauderhill. One of the first things Ravi did on arrival was to call Virat and Rohit to his room and impress upon them that for Indian cricket to be healthy, they needed to be on the same page. ‘Whatever happened on social media, that’s all fine, but you two are the most senior cricketers so this must stop,’ Ravi said in his typical no-nonsense manner. ‘I want you to put all this behind and get together for us to move forward.”
After that, Sridhar talks about how the two stars then went on to become good friends and improved their relationship.
“You could see that things started to get better after that. Ravi’s action was swift, simple and decisive. It was just getting both the guys together, sitting them down and making them talk. Ravi didn’t waste any time doing so,” Sridhar explained.
“I have heard a lot of things from the outside, If the atmosphere was not right then we would not have been able to come on top of ODI. In my opinion, it’s baffling. It’s ridiculous to read such stuff. We are feeding on lies and overlooking facts and creating fantasies and scenarios. Bringing personal lives into the picture is disrespectful. Baffling that lies are being floated.”
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“We wouldn’t have had the kind of performances we’ve had if the dressing room atmosphere wasn’t a good one. The kind of performances we’ve had is only possible due to the camaraderie, trust, and understanding in our team.”
