Kapil Dev
Kapil Dev. Pic Credits: Twitter

Legendary India National Cricket Team all-rounder Kapil Dev, who led India to the triumph in the 1983 ICC Cricket World Cup, has admitted that Team India can be labelled as “chokers” for their repeated failures in the ICC events.

On Thursday, November 10, 2022, India got eliminated from the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 after facing a heartbreaking 10-wicket defeat against England in the second semi-final at the Adelaide Oval.

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The failure of the Indian team in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final is the latest in their growing list of disappointments in knockout matches. India won their last ICC tournament in 2013 under the leadership of MS Dhoni. Since then they have managed to qualify for the knockouts of every ICC tournament, barring the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022, without tasting success.

Meanwhile, legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev said that labelling Team India as “chokers” is completely fine as they “come close and then choke”.

“Yes, we can call them chokers. That’s okay. They come close and then choke.”, Kapil told in a show on ABP News.

However, he urged the fans not to be “too harsh” on the Indian team after their defeat in the semi-final, pointing out that it was one bad game for the Men in Blue. He said:

“But don’t be too harsh. I agree, India played bad cricket, but we cannot be overly critical based on just one game. 

“England read the pitch better and played better cricket. We should not be too harsh on our players. These are the same guys who have brought laurels to the country.”

When even the spinners are bowling short, then what can you expect? – Kapil Dev

Kapil Dev
Kapil Dev. Image-PTI

Kapil Dev further slammed Indian bowlers for their failure to dismiss the England openers in the high-profile semi-final game. He said that the target of 169 set by Team India was good, but the bowlers performed poorly in the match and they failed to build any pressure on the opposition. He said:

“168-170 is a good score. But if you don’t bowl according to the pitch, then this is what is going to happen. It is very easy to say in hindsight but look at the number of shorts balls they bowled.

“When even the spinners are bowling short, then what can you expect? From the very start, we were poor with the ball. Had we conceded 12-13 runs in three-four overs, we could have built some pressure.”

Also Read: Indian T20I Team To Undergo Big Transition After T20 World Cup 2022 Exit, Seniors Not To Play T20Is In 2023 – Reports

 

Sonanchal Gautam is the Assistant Content Manager at Cricketaddictor. He is a professional Wrestling and Hip-hop enthusiast.