I’ve always been proud of Sachin (Tendulkar), but I’ve become more proud of him after his ‘I’m an Indian first’ comment the other day... Why should that upset anybody?” asked the iconic Kapil Dev.
Speaking to The Telegraph on Tuesday afternoon, the 1983 World Cup-winning captain added with a touch of emotion: “Like you, I’m disappointed that nobody has actually defended Sachin after he’s been attacked (by the Shiv Sena)... He’s done so much for the country and, surely, Maharashtra is an integral part of it...
“I’m particularly disappointed that the biggest players from Maharashtra and Mumbai, like Sunil Gavaskar, Dilip Vengsarkar and Ravi Shastri, haven’t reacted... They must make their stand clear... Do they support Sachin or not? I’d like somebody as eminent as Lata Mangeshkarji, too, to make public her position on the entire controversy...
“It would be a sad day if, for example, a sportsman from Bengal said he was a Bengali first and, then, an Indian... All of us are first Indians, then members of any community or belonging to a specific state...”
Kapil, who was contacted in New Delhi, felt that it “wasn’t necessary” for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to take a stand.
“I wouldn’t say that the BCCI, as an institution, has to react... But, yes, some officials could do so as individuals... More than them, though, the Gavaskars have to take a position... They should come out with the truth... Nobody has the right to stop somebody from stating what they believe in,” Kapil maintained. Advertisement
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