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In a severe letter to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) criticizing the team’s former head coach Ramesh Powar in 2018, former India women’s cricket team captain Mithali Raj described herself as “depressed, deflated, and let down.”
The India legend, who also accused Powar of “humiliating” her during the T20 World Cup, also attributed Diana Edulji’s betrayal of her trust to her time as a member of the BCCI’s Committee of Administrators (CoA).
Following her shocking exclusion from India’s starting XI in the T20 World Cup semifinal match against England, Mithali made accusations against Powar. Her letter shook Indian cricket, sparking a controversy. In response, Powar charged the former captain with elevating herself above the team.
Powar was fired from the Indian women’s team as a result of the argument, and the BCCI called for new candidates to fill the position. The story was not over, though, as Mithali was about to find out when two of her teammates, Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana—the two players who stood out the most in the team after the former captain herself—wrote to the BCCI to ask the organisation to approve Powar’s continued employment as head coach.
“Sir Ramesh Powar not only improved us as players but did motivate us to set targets and challenge our own limits. He has changed the face of the Indian women’s cricket team both technically and strategically. He has inculcated in us the sense of winning,” Harmanpreet said back in 2018.
But given that Harmanpreet is now in the same situation as Mithali, it appears that 2018 has repeated itself.
As per a report in Hindustan Times, Harmanpreet had requested the national selection panel and the BCCI secretary Jay Shah to remove Powar as head coach of the team after the conclusion of the Asia Cup in Bangladesh in October this year. The Indian captain was reportedly not happy with Powar’s coaching style.
After India’s early-year elimination from the T20 World Cup, rumours about Powar’s impending departure began to circulate. He remained in charge, though, as India advanced to the Commonwealth Games final and then won their seventh Asia Cup championship.
Powar’s transition to men’s cricket at the NCA has been referred to by the BCCI as a “restructuring module.” He replaces VVS Laxman at the NCA, where he previously worked from 2019 to 2020.
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The legitimacy of Kanitkar’s appointment, however, has come into question. His appointment did not follow the procedure outlined in the BCCI constitution, which is the Cricket Advisory Committee. Regarding this matter, the BCCI made no mention in its press release.
Additionally, neither the identity nor the timing of the incoming head coach was mentioned.
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