Raja Venkat says India team suffered from groupism in 2012; revelations criticised by former selectors

The Indian team during the 2011/12 Adelaide Test

Former selector of the India team, Raja Venkata, has carried on in his revelations of dressing room intrigue in 2012, saying that there were factions within the team and an atmosphere of groupism prevailed back then. He had earlier revealed that the selectors had wanted to replace MS Dhoni with Virat Kohli as India captain, a move vetoed by BCCI President N Srinivasan.

"Two of my colleagues were there during the Test series and after 0-3 margin, they came back. What they saw was that the team's morale was down and players were confined in small groups and it didn't look good," Venkat told PTI about the 2011/12 tour of Australia.

"Since we had seen Virat lead a North Zone team brilliantly in a Deodhar Trophy competition a season before, we thought why not select him as captain for tri-series. Accordingly, we informed the then secretary (Sanjay Jagdale).

"But the BCCI president said that since the team had already been announced, there was no need to change the captain. As per BCCI constitution, the President was well within his rights to overrule the selectors' decision," said Venkat.

Venkat’s disclosure bereft of cricketing logic: Source close to Srinivasan

Venkat’s revelations have come under fire from several quarters, despite there being no official gag restriction on selectors after their term is over.

"It leaves a bad taste. It creates unnecessary disharmony in the dressing room once you make it known who backed who in selection meetings. If there is any opposition in the meetings then you protest within. Revealing things only damages the interest of Indian cricket," said Kiran More, former chairman of selectors.

“There is an unwritten rule, it's an ethics issue not to bring selection matters into public domain," said Ranjib Biswal, a former selector.

"Raja Venkat's disclosure is bereft of cricketing logic. When the selection was done for the tri-series in Australia after India lost the first Test, the selection committee's call for Dhoni's head was illogical and that too when India were the reigning world champions in ODIs”, said a source close to Srinivasan, explaining his stand on the matter.

“In just six months, after winning the World Cup, they were thinking of removing Dhoni and that too replace him with Kohli in ODIs.”