Kapil Dev supported the idea of according a player a dignified farewell. “Every cricketer should be given a memorable warm send-off (like Ashish Nehra) and should be told that you served the nation well,’ said the former India captain.
"The cricketer will feel honoured if given a send off similar to one given to Nehra," added Kapil, while flagging off Wonder Cement Saath 7 cricket Mahotsav here on Wednesday.
Kapil is the brand ambassador in promoting the concept in rural India with the current edition being organised in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat.
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Conceptualised by former Hyderabad cricketer Tarun Singh Chauhan, the tournament is aimed at giving youngsters in the rural belt a chance to play competitive cricket. “This tournament was initiated keeping the consumer in mind and to involve people from all over the three states. The best way to do so was through cricket and we have been able to draw in people from all walks of life, something that is truly remarkable,” Chauhan explained.
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'Speaking on the new set of rules in the game, related to weight of the bat and allowing a substitute wicketkeeper, Kapil noted, “The new cricket rules, including bat weight, will help improving the game. Cricketers like Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar (Kumar) and (Jasprit) Bumrah have developed their own style of cricket. Bhuvi was frail to look at and Bumrah had an awkward action. Twenty years back, someone like Bumrah would have been driven away by the coaches. He is settled now. Both Bhuvi and Bumrah know how to control their bowling.”
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On Pandya being given different roles, Kapil responded, “We can only speculate from outside but I am sure the team management has its plans in place. The team management would know best to use Hardik because they have a specific role assigned to him. We all have opinion on cricket but do we all understand the game better than the team management. Let’s leave some things to the team management too.”
Kapil insisted on the view that each generation has its heroes. “When Sunil Gavaskar retired, we thought there won’t be another like him. There won’t be no doubt. But then Sachin (Tendulkar) came along. Today we have Virat Kohli. I think each generation is an improvement on the previous one. As for records, they should be broken because the bar has to be raised high in each era.”
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