'Rewards come later for a cricketer' - Kapil Dev's golden advice while interacting with U19 World Cup stars

Legendary Indian cricketer, Kapil Dev was seen interacting with star U19 cricketers, Harnoor Singh and Raj Angad Bawa at a recent event. Both Singh and Bawa were instrumental in India’s triumphant campaign at the recently concluded U19 World Cup in West Indies. The ceremony that was held in Chandigarh by the Union Territory Cricket Association (UTCA) saw both the young cricketers being felicitated for their accomplishments in the tournament.

Dev on the occasion had some invaluable words of wisdom for two cricketers as he advised that their focus should always stay on performances and in excelling at what they do. Everything else including respect and rewards will follow only if they can shine on the field, as per the former cricketer.

“Rewards come later for a cricketer. The biggest thing for a cricketer is the motivation to perform better and excel in the long run. One will get respect only till the performance keeps coming and that should be your goal,” Dev said at the event, as quoted by Sportskeeda.

Both Tendulkar and Kambli matched each other in terms of talent but Kambli went astray: Kapil Dev

The 1983 World Cup-winning captain also referred to Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli as examples when trying to put his point through. He explained that both the former cricketers were equally talented but it was Tendulkar’s focus that helped him achieve wonders while Kambli lost his way.

“I have seen the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli. Both matched each other in terms of talent but Kambli went astray. So your motivation should be to aim for perfection and keep working for that,” he added.

In terms of their performance at the World Cup, both the young Punjab cricketers showed plenty of ability. All-rounder, Bawa, who was the player of the match in the finals against England scored 252 runs and picked up nine wickets through the tournament. On the other hand, Singh scored a crucial century in India’s opening game. 

Interestingly, Bawa was also only the second player after Dev to have recorded a 150+ score and a five-wicket haul in the same ICC event after the former cricketer did it at the 1983 World Cup.