Former India captain and Team Director Ravi Shastri has resigned from his post as media representative in ICC’s prestigious Cricket Committee.
While that in itself is not a big deal — people leave committees all the time — the timing of it shows there is more to this than what meets the eye.
We say that because, incidentally, the chairman of ICC Cricket Committee is current Team India coach Anil Kumble, who pipped Shastri to the job after getting nod from high profile Cricket Advisory Committee.
Make of that what you will, but is it just a coincidence?
“I have already submitted my resignation. There are personal commitments and I have been there for six years,” Shastri told PTI without further elaborating anything.
The official reason is his busy media commitments as commentator, TV expert and columnist, but there is intense speculation that the former all-rounder may have resigned as he is yet to come to terms with rejection that led to a widely publicised spat with Cricket Advisory Committee member Sourav Ganguly.
A BCCI source told PTI:
Just like Sourav, Ravi is also an emotional man at one level. He is yet to come to terms with rejection. Since he became a media representative as BCCI nominee, probably, he is not willing to continue in that post. Also with Kumble expressing his opinion to continue as chairman, it might just be uncomfortable for both of them to sit in a meeting.
“Also media representative is more of a decorative post in ICC Cricket Committee,” the source added.
A few days back when Anil Kumble was named the chief coach, Shastri said that one of the Committee members Ganguly was not present when his interview was being conducted.
Shastri had termed Ganguly’s absence “disrespectful” to which the left-hand batsman retorted saying that the Mumbaikar was “living in fool’s world”.
“If Ravi was so serious about the job, he should have been in Kolkata for interview rather than appearing through Skype while holidaying in Bangkok,” Ganguly had said.
Looks like this saga will rumble on!
(With PTI inputs)