Men’s ODI WC: I wasn’t invited, they didn’t call me so I did not go, says Kapil Dev on missing the final

Ahmedabad: India’s 1983 World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev has claimed that he was “not invited” by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to watch the final of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 between India and Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium here on Sunday.

In an interview with ABP News, Kapil Dev claimed he was not invited for the match, when asked will he attend the final of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023.

“I wasn’t invited. They didn’t call me, so I did not go. As simple as that. I wanted the whole 1983 team to be there with me, but I guess because it’s such a big event and people are so busy handling responsibilities, sometimes they forget,” Kapil Dev told the news channel.

Kapil Dev’s Indian team defeated West Indies in the final to lift the ODI World Cup trophy for the first time way back in 1983.

Earlier, a few media reports suggested that the BCCI might felicitate the previous World Cup-winning skippers. It was also reported that 2011 World Cup-winning captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni might also attend the final at Narendra Modi Stadium.

Asked to bat on losing the toss, India struggled with the bat and were bundled out for a below-par score of 240 in 50 overs as Virat Kohli and K.L. Rahul scored half-centuries.

Chasing the target, Australia were 126/3 in the 24th over at the time of filing this report.

–IANS