The dressing room atmosphere in India's ODI team has reportedly been affected by the strained relationship between India's head coach Gautam Gambhir and veteran batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
The return of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to the Indian team for the first ODI against Australia saw a major shift in the mood, in comparison to the recently concluded Test series against the same opponents. Indian cricket's heart still breathes for Kohli and Rohit, two of the biggest stalwarts in the game, but the suspense over their future and the constant chatter around their relationship with head coach Gautam Gambhir have put even the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in a spot of bother. A report has now claimed that the relationship between Gambhir, Kohli, and Rohit isn't ideal by any means.
According to Dainik Jagran, head coach Gautam Gambhir no longer shares the same relationship with Kohli and Rohit that he did when he first replaced Rahul Dravid as India's head coach. In fact, the report has claimed that the equation between the two stalwarts and the coach is turning cold.
"The relations between Gautam Gambhir and senior players Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma aren't as good as they should be, and there could be a meeting regarding the future of the two players. This could take place either in Raipur or Visakhapatnam - venues for the second and third ODIs," Jagran quoted a BCCI source as saying.
The cracks in the relationship really started to appear after Kohli and Rohit announced their unexpected retirement from Test cricket. The report made a rather explosive claim, suggesting that during the Australia ODIs, Rohit and the BCCI chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar, weren't on the best of terms.
The Australia ODI series was the first one for Kohli and Rohit in the Indian shirt after their retirements from the Test format. While Kohli struggled initially, incurring twin ducks in the first two matches, he bounced back in the third, the same match where Rohit recorded a hundred.
BCCI Upset With Current Affairs
As the South Africa ODIs begin, the relationship between Kohli and Gambhir has also been the talk of the town, with the number of conversations becoming very limited.
The current situation, however, is far from ideal from the BCCI's perspective, with the head coach Gambhir's public bashing on social media leaving the senior management upset.
"During the Australia series, Rohit and Agarkar did not interact at all. Between then and now, even Kohli and Gambhir haven't spoken much to each other. Besides, the manner in which fans of Kohli and Rohit are attacking Gambhir on social media has made the BCCI upset," the report asserted.
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