Wasn't told to not step down, says Virat Kohli

Indian Cricket team captain Virat Kohli has said that he was informed of the decision 1.5 hours before the Test team was announced, dismissing reports in the media that he was in the loop all through. Kohli also spoke about his reaction to the decision and added that whatever about this matter has been spoken about in the media is untrue.  And there was no prior communication with me at all since I announced the T20 captaincy decision up till the 8th,Kohli said on Wednesday. Virat contradicts the statements made by BCCI president Sourav Ganguly over the past few days. Ganguly had mentioned that he had personally spoken to Kohli about the decision to name Rohit Sharma as the new ODI captain and that so did chairman of selectors Chetan Sharma.

Kohli stressed there were no hard feelings between him and the BCCI, and that his decision to step down as India's T20I captain was received well, a stark contrast to president Sourav Ganguly's take on the matter. The former India captain had revealed in an interview that 'the board had requested Kohli to not step down as the T20I captain, but he didn't agree'. "Obviously, we have not won ICC tournaments. I can understand the reasons. There was no debate as to whether the decision was right or wrong. Whatever decision the BCCI made was taken from a logical point of view, which is totally understandable," added Kohli.

Virat Kohili also clarified that there are no problems between him and Team India's newly appointed captain Rohit Sharma. Kohli also lauded Rohit's abilities as a leader and said that he would give his hundred percent support to the new captain and head coach Rahul Dravid in whatever vision they set for the team in limited overs cricket. Virat Kohli also put an end to all rumours about his participation in the ODI series in South Africa and said that he had never asked BCCI for rest and that he will be available for selection for the series. India are scheduled to play three Tests and three ODIs on the tour of South Africa. Rohit Sharma has been ruled out of the Test series due to a left hamstring injury.