Guwahati: Right after Virat Kohli’s statement on a fan’s tweet went viral with the Twiteretti attacking the India skipper with harsh words and criticizing him, the BCCI too has chosen to slam the top Indian player.
The controversial statement made by Virat Kohli is against the ethics of sportsperson and hence, it has created quite a buzz in social media along with inside BCCI. BCCI treasurer Anirudh Chaudhary has hit back at the Indian skipper for such comments. Chaudhary told media, "We, at the BCCI value our cricket fans and respect them and their choices. I loved to watch Sunil Gavaskar bat, but also loved watching (Gordon) Greenidge, (Desmond) Haynes and Viv Richards. I loved watching Sachin, Viru (Virender Sehwag), Sourav (Ganguly), VVS (Laxman), Rahul (Dravid) bat but also loved Mark Waugh, Brian Lara and so many others.”
He further adds, “Shane Warne for me has been the most exciting spinner to watch, but one felt the most thrill when Anil (Kumble) was bowling. Kapil Dev on song was a delight to watch as were (Richard) Hadlee, (Ian) Botham and Imran (Khan). I think this has to do with respecting cricketing excellence without any thoughts about geographical or political boundaries.”
Another BCCI official adds that by showing such attitude to his fans, Kohli is not doing good to the brands with which he is endorsed. He is in fact, violating the endorsement norms with his statement. The BCCI official said, “Virat needs to understand that if the fans go away to other countries, then no Puma etc. will want to sign him for Rs. 100 crores. The BCCI’s revenue will fall, and consequently the players’ fees. If he checks his contract, he may find that he may have violated his contract with this statement. Just like he violated BCCI’s contract with Nike when travelling to England to support Puma.”
Notably, a fan of Kohli had commented on Twitter that he saw "nothing special" in Kohli's batting and then compared his game with other international players saying "English and Australian batsmen more." This made the Indian skipper ask the fan to go "live somewhere else". He further added, “Okay, I don’t think you should live in India then… you should go and live somewhere else no. Why are you living in our country and loving other countries? I don’t mind you not liking me but I don’t think you should live in our country and like other things. Get your priorities right.”