Former Board of Control for Cricket in India president Raj Singh Dungarpur blamed Sourav Ganguly for the recent spat with coach Greg Chappell and said the Indian skipper lacks the stature the legendary Australian cricketer enjoys.
"Chappell is a genius. Sourav is much below Chappell in stature," Dungarpur told newspersons in Kolkata on Wednesday.
He also questioned Ganguly's ability to motivate his teammates.
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"He himself has not been playing well for a long time. How can he motivate his boys?"
When pointed out that Ganguly had scored a century in the first Test against Zimbabwe, the Dungarpur said, "Don't you think that he batted too slowly?"
Dungarpur had earlier slammed the BCCI for the spat, terming it as an "unfortunate happening".
"What has happened in Zimbabwe is unparalleled," he said.
A prominent leader in the opposition faction in the BCCI, he said the instance revealed failure of the ruling group in handling situations "both on and off the ground".
However, "these things, though unfortunate, are going to help us in case there is an election for the president's post," he said referring to the BCCI AGM, slated for Thursday.
Former BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah also disapproved of the incident.
"This is not a good thing for the team. Internal matters should not be spoken about in public," he said.
Ganguly raised a storm when he claimed that he was asked to step down as captain on the eve of the first Test against Zimbabwe. Though he did not name anyone, it later transpired it was coach Chappell who had asked him to make way.