Former BCCI CoA Head Vinod Rai Opens Up About Kumble-Kohli, Mithali-Powar Rifts In New Book

In his new book, "Not Just a Nightwatchman — My Innings in the BCCI", former BCCI CoA chief Vinod Rai has given behind the scenes details about the rifts between Anil Kumble and Virat Kohli as well as between Mithali Raj and Ramesh Powar.

Rai says that men's team captain Kohli and then coach Kumble had major differences in opinion with Kumble being seen as "too much of a disciplinarian".

"I had spoken to Virat Kohli on the issue and he did mention that the younger members of the team felt intimidated by the way he worked with them," Rai writes in the book.

"He (Kumble) felt he had been unfairly treated and a captain or team should not be given so much importance," Rai writes.

Rai also writes about the rift between woman's team coach Ramesh Powar and former captain Mithali Raj after the latter was dropped for the semi-final of the 2018 T20 World Cup.

"She felt that more than her being benched in the semi-final game, it was the way in which she was being treated by the coach that distressed her," Rai writes.

Powar, Rai writes, devoted the bulk of his reported to the difficulty he was facing in handling Mithali. "He maintained that it was due to her poor strike rate that the team management had decided to drop her for the semi-final game and retain the winning combination of the last match."

Rai also touched upon the controversy surrounding KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya's appearance on Koffee with Karan.

"Not being so media savvy, they seemed to have got carried away and indulged in ‘boy’s dressing room talk’ without being conscious that they were on national television. We all acknowledge that their remarks were reprehensible," Rai writes.