Kapil Dev slams Indian seniors

A strong advocate of having an Indian coach for the national team, former captain Kapil Dev has lambasted senior cricketers for reportedly lobbying for a foreigner.

Kapil was apparently baffled by the fact that though they had never worked with Australian Dav Whatmore, the senior players threw their weight behind the him, after he opted against an extension of his contract with the Bangladesh team after the World Cup.

"The players have never worked with Whatmore, how can they recommend his name," a miffed Kapil told news channel Aaj Tak.

He was against the preference for a foreign coach and if the trend continued, he said, "One day, things will be such than Sachin (Tendulkar), VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly will be in contention for the coach's job but would never get it."

During the recent Bangladesh tour, Tendulkar, Dravid, Ganguly and Anil Kumble reportedly met BCCI President Sharad Pawar and requested him to get a foreigner to take over as the new coach.

Kapil felt projecting Whatmore as the front-runner for the job undermined the authority of the seven-member committee which meets in Bangalore on Monday.

Headed by BCCI President Sharad Pawar, the committee includes former captains S Venkataraghavan, Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri.

"The committee has several greats in it and the selection of the coach should be left entirely to them. If the BCCI has already made up its mind on someone, then what is the purpose of having this committee?" Kapil asked.