Former World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev has opened up on India’s performance after being knocked out from the Super 12 stage of the 2021 T20 World Cup. He feels that the BCCI and the Indian players should now plan for the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia next year. The Men in Blue were knocked out from the ICC event after eight years.
Dev added that some cricketers “prioritise” IPL over playing for the country.
“When players prioritise IPL over playing for the country, what can we say? Players should take pride in playing for their nation. I don’t know their financial condition so can’t say much,” Dev told ABP News.
The second leg of IPL took place before the 2021 T20 World Cup, due to which players didn’t get enough break for the ICC tournament.
“It’s time to look at the future. You should start planning right away. It’s not that since the World Cup is over, Indian team’s entire cricket is too. Go and plan. I just feel that there should have been some gap between IPL and the World Cup. But this is certainly there that our player today have a lot of exposure but they could not make the most of it,” Dev added.
India faced two back-to-back defeats in the ongoing T20 World Cup against Pakistan and New Zealand. Cricket lovers across the globe questioned the mental toughness of the Indian players in the first two games. Even Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah and fielding coach Bharat Arun highlighted mental fatigue inside the bio-bubble.
The 62-year-old Dev said he is not against franchise cricket, but playing for the country should be the priority. And the BCCI should plan according to it and give proper rest to their players.
