'Allow Indian players in other T20 leagues'

'Virat can break Sachin's records'

NEW DELHI: Player fatigue because of hectic flight schedules may soon be a thing of the past if the Indian cricket board ( BCCI ) heeds 1983-World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev 's suggestion.“Now that BCCI is making good money, it should have its own plane. It will save a lot of time and make life easier for Team India. The board can afford it. They should have done it five years ago,” Kapil told TOI. He added: “I would also love to see some cricketers buying their own aircrafts in the days to come. In the US, top golfers have their own planes. I don't see any reason why our players can't buy it as it will save them a lot of time. I also believe that if BCCI owns planes, the players will get enough rest between matches. I am sure BCCI can also afford the parking charges,” Kapil said while adding that it will also generate 20-odd jobs if BCCI buys a plane for 30-40 passengers.The average price of an Airbus A318 plane, with a capacity of just over 100, will cost around Rs 500 crore (with additional operating costs), which the board can easily afford.Interestingly, Kapil had shared his idea with BCCI bigwigs three years ago and even told them to establish guest houses in big cities to accommodate cricketers, instead of paying hotel bills. But the board got entangled in controversies and now there may be a fear of misuse if a step like buying an aircraft is taken.Kapil, who is a part of the four-member steering committee that will help in the formation of a players' association as per the Lodha panel recommendation, also said Indian cricketers should be allowed to take part in different T20 league across the world, and not just the IPL.“This is the reason why a players' association is important. I completely agree with BCCI that if a player is contracted, he will have to obey BCCI. But if they are contracted, the Indian players should be allowed to play all over the world.”Kapil also said players have a short career span and “stopping them from earning isn't the right thing to do”. He said: “That is why a players' association is needed, to speak to those players to make them play in other T20 leagues. You need to educate the players and release them as and when required. You can't own a cricketer.”So, is cricket going the football way where club gets priority? “For me, country comes first. But I do see cricket going the football way. I think ICC along with other boards should sit together and discuss the issue on how they can make this sport richer in terms of skills and income generation for cricketers. There is no harm if the cricketers get more experience playing away from home in other T20 leagues in South Africa, Australia and in the West Indies,” Kapil said.The Haryana Hurricane also made it clear that Indian captain Virat Kohli 's achievements makes him believe that he can break Sachin Tendulkar's record. “After Sachin made his 100th century, I thought no one will break this. But after seeing Virat bat in recent times, we are starting to believe he can do it. At least, if he can bat like this in next two to three years, I won't be surprised to see him getting closer to Sachin. Virat's achievement is also special because it has come from 190-odd matches while another legend Ricky Ponting took 375 matches to score the same number of ODI centuries. This is phenomenal,” Kapil said.Asked if there was a lack of quality bowlers on the international scene, Kapil disagreed. “If the bowlers are so useless these days, then our spinner R Ashwin couldn't have taken close to 300 Test wickets. This game has always been between bat and ball and it is only our perception which needs to change. We can't be stuck comparing the past eras with present. When I was close to making the world record, I used to think about it because I was in that moment. But now, I don't even think about the wickets which I got for India.”