New Delhi: Kapil Dev, India's first World Cup-winning captain, changed the scenario of Indian cricket after his team defeated the mighty West Indies to clinch World Cup in 1983. Belonging to Haryana, Kapil became an inspiration for youngsters, who hailed from small towns and dreamt of playing for the country.
While many renowned Indian cricketers sought inspiration from Kapil and went on to take up cricket as a career. The Haryana Hurricane, however, has credited Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and MS Dhoni for changing Indian cricket forever.
"All three are different kinds of cricketers. They brought a new generation of people to the grounds. That was very important," Kapil told International Business Times, India, on Saturday on the sidelines of Krishnapatnam Golden Eagles' Golf Championship in Bengaluru.
While Kapil lauded Tendulkar for his phenomenal 24-year-old career, he said that it was Sehwag who changed the way modern day cricket was played.
"Sachin was instrumental, playing for 24 years and inspiring so many people to take up the game. Virender Sehwag changed the style of modern-day cricket," he added.
After Kapil, it was MS Dhoni, who went on to become a legend of the game despite hailing from Ranchi, which hasn't produced quality cricketers.
"And Dhoni, coming from a small town, made it big. Every Indian now feels he can belong to a small town and still dream of becoming like Dhoni," he added.