Kapil Dev credits Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, MS Dhoni for transforming Indian cricket

Kapil Dev believes Tendulkar, Sehwag and Dhoni have had remarkable roles in transforming the way the sport had been played. 

“All three are different kinds of cricketers. They brought a new generation of people to the grounds. That was very important. Sachin was instrumental, playing for 24 years and inspiring so many people to take up the game. Virender Sehwag changed the style of modern-day cricket,” Kapil told to International Business Times during the Gold Championship in Bengaluru.

Kapil, who belongs to a small town in Haryana, feels that it was Dhoni’s rise that gave inspiration to upcoming generations from small cities and towns to dream of representing the country. 

"And Dhoni, coming from a small town, made it big. Every Indian now feels he can belong to a small town and still dream of becoming like Dhoni," the 58-year-old stated.

The 1983 World Cup winning captain lauded the current Indian cricket team which has performed well at the international level. He also praised Kohli’s concern over team fitness, as he set a benchmark for players by representing himself as an example.

“Well done, Team India. We can feel happy today. Indian team is once again dominating world cricket in every format of the game. Despite so many issues in the board, in the court, the players are performing well. As a person who always believes in fitness, it is nice to see this. Cricket has reached such a level that your fitness is more important than your ability to get runs or wickets. That is a huge change in our country,” concluded Dev.