Ravi Shastri, the former head coach of the Indian cricket team, has given his opinion on the rumored conflict between Virat Kohli and Sourav Ganguly. When asked how he would handle the situation, Shastri said it would depend on his relationship with the person involved and that there is always room for growth.
Reports have surfaced that Kohli and Ganguly’s relationship has been strained since Kohli stepped down as India’s T20I captain in 2021. Recently, videos have gone viral suggesting that the two did not shake hands after an IPL 2023 match between RCB and DC.
The day after the alleged incident, it was reported that Kohli had unfollowed Ganguly on Instagram and that Ganguly had also unfollowed the former India captain.
During an interview on ESPNCricinfo, the anchor presented the situation to Shastri without mentioning any names and asked how he would handle it. Shastri replied:
“Depends on what my relationship is. If I don’t want to talk, I’ll just go past. But at the end of it, when you go and sit down, you feel that there’s always some room to grow up, no matter how old you are.”
Even though the successful partnership between Shastri and Kohli as coach and captain, the Indian team could not win an ICC trophy during their time together. Shastri’s term as head coach of Team India ended after the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE.
“He’s got that all-round ability”: Ravi Shastri on Tilak Varma
In an interview on ESPNcricinfo, Shastri also named Tilak Varma as the standout player in the ongoing IPL 2023. According to the 60-year-old, the young batsman has a future with Team India. Shastri said:
“The standout player is Tilak Varma. I said in the second or third game of the commentary that he’s an India player in near future. He will be banging that door down. He’s got that all-round ability, not just to finish off at the end, but the clarity of thought as well. When he comes out to bat, what impresses me the most is his first 10 balls; he’s not afraid to take his chances and back his strength.”
Varma made his IPL debut for Mumbai Indians last season and has scored 614 runs in 20 matches with an average of 38.38 and a strike rate of 138.91.