Chandigarh, Sep 25 (IANS) Former India cricketer and 2011 World Cup winner Yuvraj Singh’s father, Yograj Singh, has once again sparked controversy by dismissing legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev, declaring he neither knows him nor wishes to.

This remark comes months after Yograj had admitted in an interview on the YouTube channel Unfiltered by Samdish that he once harboured thoughts of killing Kapil Dev after being dropped from the Indian team in the 1980s. The former all-rounder had played just one Test and six ODIs before fading from the international scene.

“Who is Kapil Dev? I don’t know him. Because he doesn’t know me, I don’t know him. So who am I? I don’t know who he is. I know Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag – those who are doing so much for cricket. I can talk about them.

“Sir, I don’t want to be friends with anyone, nor do I want anyone to be my friend. I have removed the word friend from my dictionary. This is all a fake program,” Yograj told IANS.

At the time of the incident, Kapil Dev, for his part, chose to remain unfazed. “Kaun hai? Kiski baat kar rahe ho? (Who? Who are you asking about?)”

Even as his feud with Kapil Dev continues to resurface, Yograj has also sent out broader messages for Indian cricket. “If you give to the nation, to the world—even if you go hungry yourself but feed someone else—then God opens treasures for you,” he said.

He urged India’s cricketing fraternity to invest in the game’s future. “It shouldn’t just be Kapil Dev. Every cricketer should take this responsibility. If each of them helps produce even a single player for India, then, by God’s grace, the country will have so many great cricketers that in the coming years, no team will be able to defeat India,” he added.

At the same time, Yograj also turned his attention to India’s young stars. After Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma’s blistering opening partnership of 105 runs powered India to a six-wicket victory over Pakistan in the Asia Cup Super Fours clash, Yograj was full of praise.

“Let me tell you a very simple thing. The way Shubman Gill and Abhishek are playing, even if you have 250 runs, you will chase, but these two will have to play for 15 overs,” Yograj told IANS.

“If Shubman and Abhishek play for 15 overs, then our target is 200 runs, and after that, you can score 300 or whatever. But I will only say one thing to Abhishek – and Yuvraj has also said it many times – try to play for 12 to 15 overs, that’s all.”

–IANS

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