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This article was first published 10 years ago

'Our cricketers have no commitment towards the country'

August 23, 2014 17:10 IST

Image: India's players look on during the presentation after losing the fifth Test at The Oval
Photographs: Philip Brown/Reuters

Slamming the national cricket team for yet another disastrous Test series loss abroad, former India cricketer Kirti Azad has questioned the
passion of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men for longer version of the game as well as their commitment towards the nation. 

"It appears that our cricketers have lost passion for the game and commitment towards the country in the manner they have played the Test series in England, losing tamely to the hosts (1-3)," Azad told reporters. 

'Our cricketers have no commitment towards the country'

Image: Indian captain MS Dhoni and coach Duncan Fletcher
Photographs: Tony Marshall/Getty Images

The same bunch of our cricketers have always given their best while playing for their franchise in Indian Premier League (IPL) season after season, but when it came to playing with passion for the country their inadequacies have been exposed thoroughly," Azad, who was a member of 1983 World Cup winning team, said. 

Azad, a member of Lok Sabha from Darbhanga parliamentary constituency, also disapproved the BCCI's bid to arrest further slide in fortunes of national cricket team by appointing former skipper Ravi Shastri as the Director of the touring team for one-day series and said the step appeared
to be a 'patch work' only. 

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'A patch work can only hide cracks in the wall'

Image: Mahendra Dhoni looks on after India lost to England in the fifth Test at The Oval
Photographs: Paul Gilham/Getty Images

"A patch work can only hide cracks in the wall and not fix the problem on permanent basis," the former cricketer said, adding that Shastri's appointment as the team director may work temporarily, but it can not address the ills plaguing the national team for years. 

On the debate raging over Dhoni's dismissal or resignation on his own in the wake of Team India's yet another Test series loss abroad under his leadership, Azad disgreed with chorus for the skipper's head and said that he should be allowed to choose the timing of his retirement given his
contributions to the national team.