'Careers Of 7 Players Were Put Into The Gutter, MS Dhoni Was Told He'd Be Replaced': Yograj Singh Drops A Bombshell Statement On Ex-BCCI Selectors

Former Indian cricketer Yograj Singh criticised former BCCI selectors for mishandling Indian stars during 2011 transition phase. After India's World Cup glory in 2011, the team went through one of the hardest times getting whitewashed 0-4 in away Test series against England and Australia. The period was seen as transition time and many Indian stars were snubbed from selection following the dismal performances. The selectors had then unanimously decided to sack MS Dhoni as captain.

Former India all-rounder and 1983 World Cup hero Mohinder Amarnath was a key figure of that selection committee, years later Yograj while speaking to InsideSport slammed Amarnath and other selectors.

"You (BCCI selectors) just destroyed these boys for no reason. Boys like Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Mohammed Kaif, VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid. You just made them go after 2011," Yograj said.

"You just destroyed the team after the 2011 World Cup. The careers of 7 players were put into the gutter. That is why we're struggling," he added.

Tumultuous Time
During that phase, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman had already announced their retirement from Test cricket after England tour, but the defeats saw the likes of Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh eventually going out of the scheme of things for future India team selections.

Yograj accused Amarnath for badly handling the situation and throwing players under the bus and shielding Dhoni.
"We lost five series when MS Dhoni was the captain and he was told he would be replaced by Mohinder Amarnath, but that's not the way to do it," Yograj said.
MS Dhoni's Legacy

MS went on to captain India in Test cricket till the 2014 Australia tour when he decided to hang his boots in whites. Notably, Amarnath's tenure lasted for just a year. Dhoni retired from international cricket on August 15, 2020, at the age of 39. He announced his retirement from all formats of international cricket, including ODIs, Tests, and T20s. India's semi-final game against New Zealand at the 2019 World Cup turned out to be his last for India. He gave the captaincy baton to Virat Kohli in 2014 for Test cricket and in 2017 for White-ball format.