Chetan Sharma steps down as chief selector 

Chetan Sharma has resigned from his position as the chief selector of the Indian cricket team following a sting operation by a television channel. In the operation, he made several controversial statements, including a claim that Indian players enhance their fitness by taking injections. Sharma's resignation was accepted by the Indian Cricket Board, with Shiv Sundar Das, the selector from East Zone, likely to succeed him.

Initially, the Indian Cricket Board believed that Sharma was a victim of an unethical sting operation, but his comments about current and former Indian players and officials caused a trust deficit with the Indian team. Sharma was attending the Ranji Trophy final between Bengal and Saurashtra when he sent in his resignation from Kolkata. He was protected from the media at the ground but was not seen at the Eden on Friday.

Sharma's voluntary resignation spared the Indian Cricket Board from a lengthy disciplinary process, which would have involved a showcause notice, a temporary suspension, and a formal hearing followed by a decision from the Ethics Officer. Among the allegations made by Sharma in the sting operation was that Indian players were taking injections for fitness, making the Indian Cricket Board complicit in the unfair practice.

The most controversial statement made by Sharma was about the poor relationship between former captain Virat Kohli and former Indian Cricket Board president Sourav Ganguly. He also commented on the alleged ego clash between the two and implied that current captain Rohit Sharma was involved.

Additionally, Sharma claimed that the Indian team management was in a rush to draft Jasprit Bumrah into the national team, and that the selection committee and team management were not on the same page regarding the rehabilitation and fitness of the India spearhead. Sharma also made a scathing comment that many players, including Hardik Pandya, would come to his house and sit for hours.

Sharma was the only selector to be retained following a shake-up by the Indian Cricket Board after the Indian team's disappointing performance at the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia last year. However, following the sting operation and the controversy it generated, Sharma's continuation as chief selector became untenable.