Kapil should have quit: Ramchand

India cricket coach Kapil Dev, who has been named by former allrounder Manoj Prabhakar in the match-fixing controversy, should have quit, opined former India captain G S Ramchand on Thursday.

Ramchand was in Nagpur to present the Bankers' Sports Council annual awards.

In an informal chat with reporters, he said had Kapil opted out of his assignment, his reputation as an allrounder would have increased in the sporting fraternity. "It was unfortunate he thought otherwise and is continuing with the job, which may have a negative impact on the team's morale, " he said.

He was also hard on the Board of Control for Cricket in India. ''You cannot blame the cricketers alone. The officials are equally responsible. No, nobody is talking of their involvement,'' he said.

Ramchand said India should not play with Pakistan in a direct series in view of its involvement in militant attacks in the border state of Jammu and Kashmir.

He blasted BCCI president A C Muttiah too for equating cricket with the Olympics. Muttiah had said that since the centre refused permission to send Indian cricket team for the Toronto series, the same logic should be applied for the Olympics Games, where Pakistan is also participating.

''I am against a one-to-one series with Pakistan where sentiments of public from both the countries are involved. However, in the Olympics, hundreds of nations participate and we cannot isolate ourselves from the sporting world," he said.

Ramchand, who was manager of the Indian cricket team for different tours till 1989, said the board's much hyped code of conduct will not be able to stop match-fixing and betting in cricket.

"The board should have the guts to deal sternly with the erring players, " he said.

To a question about appointing a foreign coach, Ramchand felt the board should utilise the services of the elders available within the country. "If the board could provide infrastructure like that in South Africa, Australia and other countries, senior cricketers could do wonders with the current set of players.

"There is no use of a national cricket academy if the country's basic cricket structure is not in place," he said.

UNI

Mail Cricket Editor