Mumbai, Jan 21: The Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) has sent a notice to Team India's star batsman Virat Kohli for giving an interview to a newspaper The Telegraph the day India defeated England by 7 wickets in the third ODI in Ranchi.
The interview was published on January 19, the day India beat England in Ranchi.
The Delhi lad spoke to newspaper at length in an extensive interview, but according to the guidelines drafted by the BCCI, players cannot interact with media during a series except at a press conference.
An influential Indian cricket official is believed to have dashed off an email to a member of the team's support staff questioning how Virat Kohli spoke in between the series. The support staff member replied with a promise to reiterate media guidelines to the players.
Kohli spoke on various issues and was asked questions related to leading the Indian team in the future.
The Delhi batsman, who has received many plaudits for his performances in 2012 including the ICC's ODI Player of the Year, apologised, saying that he didn't realise that he was not supposed to talk to the media in the midst of a series. He also stressed that this won't be repeated.
When asked in the interview if he was delighted to hear Sunil Gavaskar declare him ready for India's captaincy, Kohli told the newspaper: “Sure... Coming from Mr Gavaskar, it did feel good... That one comment (after the final Test against England) lifted my confidence... Made me more aware of my responsibilities as well.”
Speaking of Dhoni's captaincy Kohli said: “I'd love to have MS' calmness and composure... I've never seen him stressed... He's been so composed even in the most difficult of situations. While remaining an aggressive cricketer, I'd still like to have his calmness. It's reassuring.”
