'Big bang' from Kapil soon

Indian cricket legend Kapil Dev says he will come up with something that will shake his detractors who 'dragged' him into the match-fixing scandal.

"I will come out with a big dhamaka and it will be in the media for at least five days," the former India captain said, when asked whether he decided to sue the cricketer who dragged him into the scandal.

Though reluctant to talk about the charges made against him by Manoj Prabhakar, Kapil said it was the media which had put him on the front pages of newspapers for about 100 days.

"The front pages are the preserve of politicians and I would have been happy to be on the sports page," Kapil, slowly inching back to cricket after a self-imposed exile from the game following the match-fixing allegations, told reporters in Cuttack on Monday night.

In the city on a business trip, the all-rounder relented to commenting on cricketing matters after being asked about coming forward to help speedster Ashish Nehra iron out his bowling.

"Cricket has made me what I am today. If any youngster seeks my help I am prepared to help him out," said Kapil, who was in Cuttack in connection with the signing of an agreement between his firm, Dev-Mushko Lighting Private Ltd, and the Orissa Cricket Association for floodlighting the Barabati stadium.

The Rs 40 million project would be completed within 120 days, he said.

On India's performance, Kapil said much should not be read into the sequence of nine losses the team had suffered in limited-over finals in recent times.

"Sometime it happens, but we should believe in the team. We must remember that the boys had played well each time to reach the final."

On frequent injuries to cricketers in recent times, he said: "Maybe, they are facing more pressure. I might have been lucky," he said, referring to the injury-free career he enjoyed.

"If the boys work hard during the off-season, they will be fit during the matches."

Right now, Kapil said, he is fully occupied with managing his business and seriously pursuing golf.

"I am practising four hours a day and my aim is to represent the country in the sport," he said.

The former India coach said he is happy that states like Orissa are churning out top class cricketers.

"It shows that the appeal of the game has spread far and wide across India."

Asked which cricketing memory he treasured most, he quickly replied: "Definitely, the World Cup victory in England in 1983."

Of his memories at Cuttack, he said he would always remember the experience of rising early in his Bhubaneswar hotel and driving all the way to Cuttack for a game.

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Mail Cricket Editor