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Rajeev Shukla backs Kohli, pulls up CoA for poor schedule
New Delhi: Former Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Rajeev Shukla on Friday pulled up the Committee of Administrators (CoA) for poor scheduling of Team Indias calendar, saying players interest should also be kept in mind while finalising an itinerary for a particular series.
“I agree with Virat Kohli that calendar is too hectic. There should not be back to back matches and series as well. Players must get some rest and also enough time to get acclimatised. CoA should have kept this in mind before finalising the schedule,” Shukla tweeted on Friday tagging the BCCI.
Shukla’s comments came after Kohli expressed displeasure over the scheduling of the ongoing New Zealand tour. Team India had to leave for New Zealand the very next day they played their last ODI against Australia in Bengaluru.
Addressing the media before the first T20I in Auckland, Kohli said that it was coming to a scenario where players were landing at the stadium from one series to the other.
“It’s getting closer and closer to landing at the stadium straight. That’s how compressed the gap has become. This kind of travelling to a place that is seven and a half hours ahead of IST is difficult to adjust immediately. Hopefully, this will be taken into consideration in the future,” he pointed. “But this is the year of the World Cup and every T20 is important. So we can’t lose our focus.”
However, BCCI officials feel the Indian skipper should have communicated the same to them rather than speaking about it in the media.
“The schedule was tight, but I don’t see what the problem is when it is a schedule made under the Committee of Administrators and supervised by the CEO. Should this issue not have been raised with them considering the fact that they seemed to be on each other’s speed dial?
“Even if he would have raised the issue with the BCCI Secretary, it could have been addressed. While Kohli is free to express himself the way he wishes to, there’s a system that needs to be followed for resolution of issues and the core of the system is communication,” the official told.
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Sunil Gavaskar gives his opinion of GT allrounder Rahul Tewatia
The left-handed batsman from Haryana is garnering praise from all quarters for the way he’s finishing games regularly in the most exciting IPL season.
Gavaskar reckons Tewatia’s whirlwind knock in Sharjah (in IPL 2020) where he smashed West Indies pacer Sheldon Cottrell for five sixes in an over, gave him the confidence that he belongs to the big stage.
Speaking on Cricket Live on Star Sports, Gavaskar said, “That assault on Sheldon Cottrell in Sharjah gave him the belief to do the impossible and the confidence that he belongs here. We saw the impossible (he did with the bat) the other day as well. There’s no twitching or touching the pads (which shows a batter’s nervousness) when he bats in the death overs. He just waits for the ball to be delivered and plays his shots. He’s got all the shots in the book, but most importantly his temperament to stay cool in a crisis is brilliant.”
Gavaskar has also nicknamed the 28-year-old cricketer the ‘ice-man’ and lauded Tewatia’s ability to remain unruffled during the tense moments.