Bedi: Tainted players should not be in the team

Bishen Singh Bedi feels that those cricketers against whom the raids are being carried out at present, should not be included in the Indian team. Bedi, who arrived in Calcutta on Monday night to attend the prize distribution ceremony of The Telegraph chess tournament, said on Tuesday, "there is a thing called the dressing room atmosphere. The inclusion of these cricketers can destroy that atmosphere. I do agree that you are innocent until proven guilty. However, even then, I feel that players like Mohammed Azharuddin, Ajay Jadeja and Nikhil Chopra should not be included in the Indian team till the investigations are completed."

The former Indian captain, who has never minced words, said "even though the game is passing through a bad time, I am sure it is just a passing phase. However, I am worried about the effect that this controversy will have on kids who are young and idolise some of those whose names have been tainted. I am sure a large number of them may develop a wrong attitude towards the game," he said.

Bedi, who was the cricket manager of the Indian team during the 1990 tours of New Zealand and England, was also of the view that Kapil Dev should give up his position as coach. "I talked to him the day he broke down on television. I felt bad for him. But at the same time, I feel that too many things are on his mind right now. That would definitely affect his performance as a coach. So he should not continue," he said.

Bedi also felt sad at the way Kapil's name has been tainted. "He has been one of the greatest cricketers that India has produced. Also, he started his career under my captaincy. So I definitely feel bad for him," said Bedi.

Regarding the Code of Conduct that the BCCI is formulating for the players, Bedi said, "The BCCI should make it very clear to the cricketers that it will not tolerate the selling of the prestige of the nation and that it will come down heavily on players who are not true to the country. That will be sufficient enough."