India veteran Mithali Raj has written a letter to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) expressing her anger over the ‘humiliation’ she faced moments before she was dropped from the playing XI of the Women’s World T20 semi-final against England.
As per India Today report, in a letter to BCCI, Raj has said that coach Romesh Powar humiliated her during the course of the tournament. Raj’s personal coach RSR Murthy was also quoted as saying in The Sportstar that she was told during the warm-up session on the morning of the semi-final against England that she was not going to feature in the playing XI.
Raj wrote in the letter that she has no qualms with the captain Harmanpreet Kaur. She was quoted as saying on India Today, “I would also like to point out that I have nothing against the T20 captain Harmanpreet Kaur except for the fact that her call to support the decision of the coach to leave me out of the eleven was baffling and hurtful. I wanted to win the world cup for my country and it hurts me because we lost a golden opportunity.”
India lost the semi-final against England by 8 wickets.
Before that match, Raj had scored two fifties in the tournament, winning player of the match awards for the knocks.
Raj also accused CoA member Diana Edulji of bias.
Here’s the full letter:
Mithali Raj's accuses CoA member Diana Edulji for using her position against her. Then lashes out at Romesh Powar for humiliating her. Her full letter to BCCI CEO Rahul Johri and Saba Karim#HarmanpreetKaur #MithaliRaj #BCCI @M_Raj03 pic.twitter.com/svbbkhdmWD
— Yash Bhati (@yashbhati0017) November 27, 2018
“To put things in perspective, I have always reposed faith in Diana Edulji and have always respected her and her position as a member of the COA, Never did I think she will use her position against me, more after hearing what all I had to go through in the Caribbean as I had spoken to her about it. Her brazen support in the press with regard to the decision of my benching in the semifinal of the T20 World Cup has left me deeply distressed, more because she knows the real facts having spoken to me,” Raj wrote in the letter.
Raj also wrote that she has felt depressed and deflated for the first time in her career. She wrote, “For the first time in a 20 year long career, I felt deflated, depressed and let down. I am forced to think if my services to my country are of any value to a few people in power who are out to destroy me and break my confidence.”
