Chandigarh: Former Indian cricket Captain Kapil Dev, who led the team to World Cup victory in 1983, on Sunday charged the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) with wanting "only yes men in their team".

Kapil said the BCCI administration had become "very smart" and only wanted "yes men" in their team. "That is why despite producing many legends in the world cricket, India is still searching in alien lands for someone suitable for the job of a coach of our national cricket team."

"I revered the board as my parents and ready to work with them but they are adamant to keep us away from their working of cricket board," said Kapil. "Many of my contemporary cricketers also want to work for the betterment of the sport but the board does not allow us to do. They might be afraid of us that they would not be able to take sceptical and irrational decisions in our presence," said Kapil while addressing a meet-the-press here on Sunday.

Kapil was named as the Indian cricketer of the century in 2002 by Wisden for his outstanding services to the sport. He also held the record of the most test match wickets for a period of five years in nineties.

On the issue of dropping Yuvraj Singh from the national squad for the Sri Lanka tour, Kapil said that Yuvraj did not perform well in the last few games, so he deserved this. "He is a bit wayward in his approach towards international cricket as every other day he is involved in one or the other scandal."

"He should avoid such things for at least another 10 years and single-mindedly focus on cricket if he wants to prolong his career. He has immense talent and ability but there is a dire need to use this talent in performing consistently on the field," he added.

He said that their Indian Cricket League (ICL) has no rivalry with Indian Premier League (IPL) started by BCCI but they oppose those people who hinder the progress of cricket in the country. He added that ICL has many surprises and new things to offer in its next session in October this year.

Source : IANS