Anil bhai has expressed his views and he’s taken the decision to step out and we will respect it: Virat Kohli

After Indian cricket was rocked by head coach Anil Kumble‘s resignation, captain Virat Kohli has finally shared his views on the matter. Ahead of India’s 5-match ODI series against the Windies that begins on June 23 in the Caribbean, Virat talked about on the ongoing controversy in the pre-match press conference.

Several reports blamed Kohli as the singular reason behind Anil Kumble’s unexpected resignation. Kumble himself put out a ‘thank you’ note on social media in which he mentioned that it was ‘apparent’ that his relationship with Kohli was ‘untenable’ and therefore he decided to move on.

The Indian captain on his part had earlier restrained from making any remarks about the issue, but in the presser ahead of the ODI series, he essentially said that what happens in the dressing room, stays in the dressing room. Virat tried to dodge questions about whether the situation could have been handled differently by putting forth the ‘sanctity of the change room’.

Dressing room sanctity paramount: Virat Kohli

“One thing for sure is that I’ve had 11 press conferences that have happened during the Champions Trophy. We have created a culture over the last 3-4 years that whatever happens in the change room, we’ve tried to maintain the sanctity of the change room throughout. That is what the whole team believes in. For us that is paramount. I’ve always respected that and we have continued to maintain that as well,” Kohli said.

“Obviously Anil bhai has expressed his views and he’s taken the decision to step out and we will respect that decision. It’s something that has happened right after the tournament.  As I said, it’s his opinion which I respect. I have total respect for him as a cricketer and what he’s achieved as a nation. All the years that he’s played. That’s no taking away that aspect of him at all. And we all respect him totally,” he added.

Kohli also evaded queries about how Anil Kumble’s approach to the game changed after reports of a rift between the coach and the captain. He once again played the ‘dressing-room-sanctity’ card and maintained that he would not disclose details in public.

“Like I said for me what’s most important is to maintain the sanctity of the dressing-room and what happens in the change-room is something that’s very sacred and private to all of us. And something that I would not express in details in a public scenario. As I said, his point of view is out there and we respect that decision,” Virat Kohli said.

Clearly, the captain is not willing to open up completely on the Kumble-saga which unfolded over the course of the last few weeks. His choice of words and his repetitive efforts to stick to the cards makes it evident that he is unlikely to come off clean from this mess in Indian cricket.