BCCI chief selector Chetan Sharma resigns after ‘sting operation’ scandal

Chetan Sharma, the BCCI’s chief selector, has decided to resign on Friday. Jay Shah, the BCCI secretary, accepted Sharma’s resignation.  “Yes, Chetan has tendered his resignation to BCCI secretary Jay Shah and his resignation has been accepted. His position had become untenable after the sting operation. He resigned voluntarily and wasn’t asked to resign,” a senior BCCI source told PTI on condition of anonymity on Friday.

Chetan Sharma was in Kolkata with other members of the Ranji Trophy selection committee for the final between Bengal and Saurashtra. They had come to pick the Irani Cup team.

Sharma, who was reinstalled as chief selector following India’s bittersweet performance at the T20 World Cup in Australia, got into controversy after ZEE Media recorded him divulging confidential information in a sting operation.

The head selector’s venomous statements sparked outrage in Indian cricket. Sharma claimed in a series of exposes that some Indian players take injections to expedite their return to international cricket.

Sharma revealed that there was a “ego battle” between former Indian captain Virat Kohli and ex-BCCI president Sourav Ganguly. When Ganguly was in charge, batting legend Kohli stepped aside as India’s captain. After Kohli stepped down as India’s captain, Ganguly said the BCCI had requested him to reconsider his decision. Nevertheless, Kohli contradicted Ganguly by saying that the move was deemed a “progressive step” at the time by the highest Indian cricket board. In 2022, veteran opener Rohit was named India’s captain across all formats.

Besides giving insights about internal discussions involving head coach Rahul Dravid and skipper Rohit, chief selector Sharma also claimed that he was at loggerheads with the management over Bumrah’s return. The Indian pacer has struggled to make a comeback into the national side after his back injury. Pacer Bumrah is expected to miss the remainder of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The star pacer is also doubtful for the One Day International (ODI) series against Australia in the World Cup year.

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