'He had no business in coaching' - Rashid Latif attributes Virat Kohli's slump to Ravi Shastri's coaching

Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Rashid Latif made a huge claim as he stated that the reason for Virat Kohli’s poor run of form is Ravi Shastri becoming the India coach. Latif said that Shastri, was the head coach of the Indian team from 2017 to 2021, had “no business” in coaching the Indian team.

Latif stated that had Shastri not become the coach, Kohli would not have gone out of form. Notably, Kohli has struggled to be among runs over the last two years, failing to register a hundred in any format since November 2019.

“It is because of him (Shastri) that this has happened,” said Latif on the YouTube channel ‘Caught Behind’. “In 2019, you sidelined a player like Kumble and in came Ravi Shastri. Whether he had the accreditation or not, I have no idea.”

That is backfiring now, isn’t it?: Rashid Latif

Latif also said that there might have been other people apart from Kohli who would have played a role in getting Shastri into the team. Shastri took over the coaching duties from Anil Kumble in 2017.

“He was a broadcaster. Had no business in coaching,” said former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter. “Barring Virat Kohli, I am sure there would have been other people who played a role in getting Shastri in. But that is backfiring now, isn’t it? Had he not become the coach, he (Kohli) wouldn’t have gone out (of form).”

Shastri, having formerly been a team director, was appointed as the coach by the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), which comprised Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman and Sourav Ganguly. In 2019, following the ICC World Cup, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) reappointed him as the India coach until the 2021 T20 World Cup. The current India coach Rahul Dravid took over the coaching duties following Shastri’s retirement.

Latif played for Pakistan from 1992 to 2003, appearing in 37 Test matches and 166 ODIs, and scoring 1,381 runs and 1,709 runs respectively. He also has 301 catches and 49 stumpings across the two formats.