Title-holders India will look to put an off-field row behind them when they face archrivals Pakistan in their Champions Trophy opener at Edgbaston today.
The build-up to what is arguably cricket’s most anticipated fixture has been dominated by reports of a falling out between India captain Virat Kohli and coach Anil Kumble.
Former India leg-spinner Kumble has overseen five Test series wins since his appointment in June last year.
Photo: AFP
His contract expires after the end of the Champions Trophy, but many have questioned the wisdom of the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) decision to advertise Kumble’s job a week before the one-day international tournament started.
Ramachandra Guha, who quit an Indian Supreme Court-appointed four-member committee overseeing the BCCI in protest, said in his letter of resignation: “If indeed the captain and the head coach were not getting along, why was this not attended to as soon as the Australia series was over in late March?”
“Why was it left until the last minute, when a major international tournament was imminent?” he asked.
There were fears India might not even get the chance to defend the title they won at Edgbaston four years ago by beating hosts England in a thrilling final reduced by rain to 20 overs per side after the BCCI hinted at a boycott of the 50-over tournament as a result of a revenue-sharing dispute with the International Cricket Council (ICC).
However, Kohli said as his squad left for England: “The hunger to win and ruthlessness is what we speak about all the time.”
The India captain leads a powerful batting line-up, with former Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi, in a column for www.icc-cricket.com, writing: “While Kohli is the backbone, India possesses considerable firepower around him. Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Yuvraj Singh and M.S. Dhoni are all matchwinners.”
Afridi also noted the “balance” in a bowling attack which is set to include seamers by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami as well as the spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.
Pakistan are not without hope and boast proven performers in the likes of skipper Sarfraz Ahmed, an excellent wicketkeeper-batsman, was well as a big-hitting rookie in Faheem Ashraf.
“We have nothing to lose, we just want to play our natural game,” Sarfraz said last week. “We are very hopeful of playing well in this tournament and we want to win it.”
On Friday, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson made exactly 100 before rain saw his side’s Champions Trophy opener against Australia at Edgbaston on Friday end in a no-result washout.
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