Ravi Shastri has opened up about his controversial omission from the India head coach role in 2016, claiming there was “some motive” behind the decision to overlook him despite his work with the national team. Shastri served as India’s team director from 2014 to 2016. At the end of his tenure, the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), consisting of Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman, selected Anil Kumble as the team’s new head coach.

Looking back at the episode, Shastri said he believed his record should have been enough to earn him the opportunity to continue with the team. He felt there was no sporting reason for him to be removed from the setup after serving as director.

“In 2014, I took over as the director of this side. When 2016 came, they said, ‘No, we don’t want any director, now you apply for a head coach position’. And there should have been no reason why I should not have carried on with sheer merit,”Ravi  Shastri told Republic World.

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The former India coach admitted that the decision hurt him, particularly because he felt his work was beginning to deliver results. Shastri suggested that factors beyond cricket may have influenced the outcome. “So there was obviously some other reason, some motive behind why you were shafted out, okay? And that hurt me,” he added.

HOW DID VIRAT KOHLI’S POLITICS FORCED ANIL KUMBLE TO RESIGN FROM THE COACH ROLE :-

This is one of the most controversial coach-captain rifts in Indian cricket history.

In 2016, the CAC Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman chose Anil Kumble as India’s head coach over Ravi Shastri.

Kumble got just ONE YEAR.

And during that one year, India:

Won in West Indies
Beat New Zealand at home
Beat England 4–0
Beat Bangladesh
Beat Australia 2–1

India won 12 of 17 Tests, lost just one and remained No. 1 in Test cricket.

Virat Kohli was also unstoppable, scoring four double-centuries in four consecutive series.

Yet after all of this, Kumble was gone.

Then came reports of a growing rift between Kohli and Kumble.

One reported flashpoint came during the 2017 Australia series over the selection of Kuldeep Yadav in Ranchi.

Kohli reportedly disagreed with the decision. He then missed the Dharamshala Test, where Kuldeep made his debut, took 4/68, and India won the match and the series.

There were also reports that Kumble’s strict approach to discipline, fitness and training had created friction within the dressing room.

And later, former CoA chief Vinod Rai wrote that Kohli told him some young players felt intimidated by Kumble’s style of functioning.

After the Champions Trophy final, Kumble resigned.

His parting statement said :-
The captain had reservations with my style and about my continuing as the head coach.

One of India’s greatest bowlers had delivered an extraordinary year as coach and still lasted only 12 months.

So what really happened between Virat Kohli and Anil Kumble behind the scenes?

— Cricketplusmeme 🧡🇮🇳🚩 (@cricketplusmeme) October 5, 2026

Kumble’s stint as India head coach lasted only one year before he stepped down in 2017 following a reported deterioration in his relationship with then-captain Virat Kohli. The CAC subsequently appointed Shastri as Kumble’s replacement, beginning his second spell as India coach.

The 2016 selection process also triggered a public disagreement between Shastri and Ganguly. Shastri attended his interview through a video link while in Bangkok, while Ganguly was absent during his presentation. After Kumble was appointed, Shastri described Ganguly’s absence as “disrespectful.”

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Ganguly later rejected that suggestion, arguing that Shastri should not blame one person for the decision and also questioning why he did not attend the interview in person. The disagreement became one of the more talked-about episodes in Indian cricket’s coaching history.