Mithali Raj viewed as unpopular among teammates

India's T20 skipper Harmanpreet Kaur at a city hotel yesterday. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

The crushing semi-final defeat in the Women's World T20 last Thursday has brought to the fore massive differences in the Indian team. It is learnt that ODI captain Mithali Raj and T20 skipper Harmanpreet Kaur don't see eye-to-eye. Sources said that Raj remains aloof and is not popular among her teammates who were a part of the World T20 team. The two half centuries she hit during the World T20 did not attract wholesome cheers from her teammates.

Raj was dropped for the crucial semi-final clash against England which India lost by eight wickets and all hell broke loose. The differences between Raj and Kaur forced the BCCI to summon the two senior players and team manager Trupti Bhattacharya for a meeting yesterday. While Raj met BCCI General Manager Syed Saba Karim earlier in the day to express her views, Kaur and the team manager then met BCCI CEO Rahul Johri and Karim at a five-star hotel yesterday afternoon. Johri refused to reveal the purpose of the meeting.

Mithali Raj

It couldn't be confirmed whether the CEO will prepare a report of what transpired in the Caribbean that led to Raj's dropping for the semi-final and present it to the CoA. Coach Ramesh Powar was not called for yesterday's meeting. There was no specific reason attributed to him not being called, but it is learnt that Powar, whose interim contract ends on November 30, will be summoned for a meeting with Johri and Karim in a few days.

No meeting of the women's team management has been scheduled with the Committee of Administrators (CoA) so far. Kaur looked upset after her meeting with the BCCI officials. There are also rumours that the team are divided in two camps - one belonging to Kaur and one headed by another player who is a supporter of Mithali.

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