imagine if american athletes could do this...

India coach Greg Chappell and captain Sourav Ganguly will appear before a cricket board committee on Tuesday after their public spat.

Chappell said in a leaked email he thought Ganguly should be sacked because he was not physically fit and undermined team unity.

But Ganguly, who has recently returned to the team after a ban, said he would defend himself.

He is India's most successful captain but his current form is of concern.

The row has split the players and has been headline news in India with opinion polls running in newspapers and on television.

Now a six-strong committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India will convene in Mumbai, formerly Bombay, on Tuesday to discuss the matter.

Several current India cricketers and former stars are backing Chappell, who was appointed in July, saying he is more important to the team than the 32-year-old batsman.

Whereas Ganguly, who originally revealed Chappell had asked him to stand down during the tour of Zimbabwe, has his supporters too.

Officially the team has been banned from speaking about the matter.

Former BCCI president Raj Singh Dungarpur told the BBC, Chappell was correct to make his views known to the board.

He said: "Greg will not do anything that will hurt the Indian cricket, but at the same time he will not give into the bullies. When he says he will not compromise on fitness and fielding he means it and he is sincere about it."