New Delhi: Days after he was overlooked for the Indian cricket team’s head coach’s job, a “disappointed” Ravi Shastri on Tuesday lashed out at Sourav Ganguly for skipping his interview, and accused the former skipper of being ‘disrespectful’.
Ganguly, one of the members of the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) also comprising Sachin Tendulkar, V.V.S. Laxman and co-ordinator Sanjay Jagdale, was entrusted with the responsibility of interviewing the 21 shortlisted candidates for the top job, for which Shastri was one of the front-runners. During Shastri’s interview process, Ganguly, who is also the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) President, was out for a meeting which miffed the former Mumbai all-rounder. Speaking to a news channel, Shastri said he was disappointed and felt disrespected by Ganguly’s behaviour and advised him not to repeat such things in the future.
“Nothing surprises me in Indian cricket anymore. A member of the committee (Ganguly) wasn’t present and that was disrespectful to the selection process. A person was disrespectful of a candidate who he was going to interview. He was disrespectful to the job he was entrusted with. Next time, be present in a meeting, especially when it is as important as this one,” the former Indian team director advised the Bengal southpaw.
Shastri, however, refused to criticise the process and said he did what was expected of him. “I had a job to do which was to apply for the job and appear for the interview. I don’t have to say anything about the process.”
The 54-year-old said he was disappointed because he had put in a lot of hard work during his 18-month stint with the national squad and will not be there to take it forward. Hailing the new coach Anil Kumble, as one of the greatest cricketers in the country, Shastri said: “But Anil (Kumble) is one of our greatest cricketers and the ball is in his court. He has got a great team that he can take forward.”
