New Delhi, Mar 5: Former India pacer Praveen Kumar gave a hard-hitting reaction to Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan losing their BCCI contracts weeks before the start of IPL 2024.
Legendary Indian cricketer Kapil Dev welcomed the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) decision to terminate the central contracts of Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan after the duo ignored the directive to play the Ranji Trophy. Extending his support to Iyer and Kishan, former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri backed the duo to come back stronger while 1983 World Cup winner Kirti Azad urged Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to feature in the domestic area.
Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar sympathised with Iyer but questioned Kishan's absence from domestic cricket. Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan opted to discuss the curious case of Hardik Pandya in the aftermath of the BCCI contract saga. A lot has been said ever since the apex cricket board of India unveiled the list of 30 contracted players for the 2023-24 season. With opinions taking flight ahead in the lead-up to the Indian Premier League (IPL) season 2024, former India pacer Praveen Kumar has also shared his honest views about Iyer and Kishan losing out on their BCCI contracts.
‘Earn money, who is stopping you?': Praveen to Iyer and Kishan
“Paisa kamao, kaun mana kar rha hai? Paisa kamane chahiye lekin aise bhi nahi hona chahiye ki aap domestic nahi khel rahe, country ko importance nahi de rahe. (Earn money, who is stopping you? But it shouldn't be like you are not playing for the country or domestic cricket),” Praveen told The Times of India. One of India's star performers at the ICC World Cup last year, Iyer still failed to retain his Grande B contract for the 2023-2024 season.
Can Iyer and Kishan bounce back?
The out-of-form batter was released from India's squad during the England Test series. Ruled out of the quarter-final clash against Baroda, Iyer also capped off an unsuccessful return to the Ranji Trophy. Premier batter Iyer had a forgetful outing against Tamil Nadu in the semi-final clash of the celebrated tournament. Iyer's teammate Kishan was given a Grade C contract last year. However. Kishan opted to take a break from competitive cricket when India visited South Africa. Kishan then made his return at the DY Patil T20 Cup weeks before the IPL 2024.
‘Rest for a month and then play IPL'
“This thing is now firmly in the mind of players. Mai ek mahine pehle rest kar lunga, fir IPL khel lunga. Ye mentally hota hai, ki mai itne paise kaise chhorun (I will rest for a month before the IPL and then play. This happens because mentally you are not willing to let go of that much money). But this is not fair at all. A player needs to balance things. Money is important, but this (giving franchise cricket the priority) is wrong,” former pacer Praveen added.
