Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa, who has shared the dressing room with Virat Kohli in Team India, recently made a candid revelation in a podcast. He spoke about how his relationship with Kohli unknowingly developed cracks after he made certain comments about the star batter's captaincy during the 2019 ODI World Cup.
The 2019 World Cup Controversy
Under Virat Kohli's captaincy, India reached the semi-finals of the 2019 ICC World Cup but were knocked out after losing to New Zealand. Ahead of the tournament, Ambati Rayudu was seen as the front-runner for the No. 4 spot due to his consistent performances. However, the selectors chose Vijay Shankar instead, leaving many surprised.
In an earlier interview, Uthappa had criticized the handling of Ambati Rayudu. His comments indirectly questioned Kohli's leadership, sparking headlines and speculation.
“If he didn’t like anyone, they were cut. Rayudu is the prime example. He had World Cup clothes, kit bag, everything ready, thinking he would play. But you shut the door on him. That wasn’t fair,” he said in an interview with Lallantop, even going as far as to call Kohli a “cut-throat” leader.
"I Should Have Spoken to Virat First" – Uthappa
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Uthappa clarified that his remarks were not meant to target Kohli. He admitted, however, that the comments unintentionally strained his relationship with the former skipper.
“In that whole conversation, the intent was not to speak about Virat. That interview was meant to be about me. I was asked a question which I spoke to. I didn’t take into consideration at that point the sentiments of Virat. My relationship or my camaraderie with Virat was impacted by that. My learning from that was, when I spoke to him about it, I acknowledged that I should have spoken to him before, even if it was what I believed,” Uthappa said.
A Lesson Learned
Uthappa also admitted that he should have had a word with him before talking about the topic publicly.
He added, “I didn’t speak about my experience with Virat. I spoke about what I saw one of my closest friends experience under his leadership. Everyone is entitled to their own style of leadership, and everyone is entitled to have their opinion. But I should have spoken to him about it before I spoke on national television. That was my learning.”
