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CHENNAI: Former India captain Bishan Singh Bedi isn't known to mince his words. On Friday, the legendary left-arm spinner stated that the spin duo of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja were hard done by the Indian team think-tank in the shorter formats of the game.
"The captain must have some preferences and that's always a good sign. If you have a preference then the results must also show. Not against teams like Sri Lanka and West Indies and in their backyard. I strongly feel that both Ashwin and Jadeja have been undermined. Rookies like (Yuzvendra) Chahal and (Kuldeep) Yadav are products of IPL and there is a vast difference between them," Bedi, who received the MA Chidambaram birth centenary award for his outstanding contribution to Indian cricket, said.
GR Viswanath, who too was part of the function, was clear that Kohli still had some distance to cover before being hailed as a great captain. "He is doing really well but he is yet to prove that he's the best. He has to win a series abroad. He has come closer, a couple of times, but still he hasn't done enough. There are more expectations from Kohli the captain. He is still young as a captain. He hasn't reached that level. But I am confident he will reach that stage one day," Viswanath said.
Bedi also shared Viswanath's views. "I am sorry to say that the media is showing no spine. There is one reporter who was silenced very crudely by Kohli. Nobody can pull you down without your approval or with your connivance. I used to think the same way during my playing days. The respect (by the player) has to be earned and not commanded," Bedi said.
With India scheduled to travel to Australia next month, Bedi was clear that warm-up games shouldn't be taken lightly as they did during their trip to England. "We had a four-day game against Essex which was curtailed to a three-day. Why? Because of the heat in England? You must be joking," he said.
While Jadeja made a comeback into the side during last month's Asia Cup, Ashwin has not played white ball cricket for India since the tour of West Indies in 2017.
Bedi questioned Virat Kohli's preference for wrist spinners such as Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav despite the duo performing well in South Africa and England in the shorter formats.
"The captain must have some preferences and that's always a good sign. If you have a preference then the results must also show. Not against teams like Sri Lanka and West Indies and in their backyard. I strongly feel that both Ashwin and Jadeja have been undermined. Rookies like (Yuzvendra) Chahal and (Kuldeep) Yadav are products of IPL and there is a vast difference between them," Bedi, who received the MA Chidambaram birth centenary award for his outstanding contribution to Indian cricket, said.
GR Viswanath, who too was part of the function, was clear that Kohli still had some distance to cover before being hailed as a great captain. "He is doing really well but he is yet to prove that he's the best. He has to win a series abroad. He has come closer, a couple of times, but still he hasn't done enough. There are more expectations from Kohli the captain. He is still young as a captain. He hasn't reached that level. But I am confident he will reach that stage one day," Viswanath said.
Bedi also shared Viswanath's views. "I am sorry to say that the media is showing no spine. There is one reporter who was silenced very crudely by Kohli. Nobody can pull you down without your approval or with your connivance. I used to think the same way during my playing days. The respect (by the player) has to be earned and not commanded," Bedi said.
With India scheduled to travel to Australia next month, Bedi was clear that warm-up games shouldn't be taken lightly as they did during their trip to England. "We had a four-day game against Essex which was curtailed to a three-day. Why? Because of the heat in England? You must be joking," he said.
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