India Reaching Semifinals, Final Each Time, Isn’t That Achievement: Kapil Dev
Mumbai: Talking about India’s defeat against New Zealand in the WTC final, former India captain Kapil Dev said, “We criticise very quickly. You can’t win the trophy every time.”
Legendary Kapil Dev has defended Virat Kohli-led Team India amid heavy criticism after an 8-wicket loss in the recently concluded World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand.
India lost the final on reserve day after being completely dismissed by the Kiwis, which dominated the proceedings with both bat and ball. With the defeat, India’s wait for a major ICC trophy from 2013 was again extended.
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India reached the final of the Champions Trophy in 2017 before making it to the semi-final of the ODI World Cup in 2019 and reaching the final of WTC this year.
Under Kohli’s leadership, the team has become a force to be reckoned with in all formats but are yet to win their major ICC title. Dev said that Indian fans and media criticize players very easily and no team can win trophies in all major tournaments.
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Dev said during an interaction on Sports Yaari‘s YouTube channel, “Tell me one thing: they are reaching semi-finals or finals every time, isn’t that an achievement in itself? We criticize too quickly. You can’t win the trophy every time.”
“Look at how well they played. If they lose one match here or the World Cup semi-final, does that mean they are succumbing to pressure? No, that’s not how it goes. They (the opposition) had a better day, they played better. We see it very critically – one bad performance and the media shows it a hundred times: ‘These guys can’t take the pressure, can’t take pressure’. We have all won a lot of games under the same pressure as well,” he added.
India was one of the best teams in the group stages of the World Test Championship and topped the rankings after losing just one series against New Zealand away from home. They defeated Australia, South Africa, West Indies and England to make it to the finals.
The Kohli-led side will be hoping to bounce back when they take on hosts England in a five-match Test series in August this year. India had lost the Test series 4-1 on their last tour of England in 2018 and will be hoping for a turnaround this year.
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