A day after head coach Ramesh Powar accused Mithali Raj of throwing tantrums and threatening to quit and pull out of the World T20, the veteran cricketer has put a tweet saying that all her hard work through her career had been in vain.
Earlier, Powar had filed a report to BCCI CEO Rahul Johri and General Manager of Cricket Operations Saba Karim, and had accused the right-hander of "blackmailing" and "pressurising coaches".
"I'm deeply saddened & hurt by the aspersions cast on me. My commitment to the game & 20yrs of playing for my country. The hard work, sweat, in vain," Raj wrote in a tweet.
I'm deeply saddened & hurt by the aspersions cast on me. My commitment to the game & 20yrs of playing for my country.The hard work, sweat, in vain.
— Mithali Raj (@M_Raj03) November 29, 2018
Today, my patriotism doubted, my skill set questioned & all the mud slinging- it's the darkest day of my life. May god give strength
Powar, who had submitted a 10-page report to the BCCI, accused Mithali of not playing for the team and trying to chase 'own milestones' and placing her interests above the team.
Powar accused Mithali of creating problems in the side
"Mithali Raj – a senior player in the team. Minimum inputs in team meetings not a single word of appreciation after finishing at the top of the table. Could not understand & adapt to team plan. Ignored her role and batted for own milestones. Lack of keeping the momentum going which was putting extra pressure on other batters," he wrote.
Ever since Mithali was dropped from the semi-final side, there have been several deliberations doing the rounds. In a letter addressed to the BCCI, the ODI captain had accused Ramesh Powar of treating in a very shoddy way in a bid to sideline her from the team and that she was humiliated a number of times.
"My issues with the coach started immediately as we landed in the West Indies. At first, there were small signs that his behaviour towards me was unfair and discriminatory. For instance, walking off if I am sitting anywhere around, watching in the nets when others bat but choosing to walk away when I am batting in nets, if I try to go up to him to talk to start looking into his phone and keep walking. It was embarrassing and very evident to everyone that I was being humiliated. Yet I never lost my cool," she said.
Taking aim at CoA member Diana Edulji, Mithali said that she was being targetted by her.
"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," she wrote.