Enjoying his afternoon siesta on Thursday, former India captain Bishan Singh Bedi was rudely jolted by the shrill ring of his mobile phone. He wanted to avoid calls but could not after looking at the number flashing on the screen. It was from Abdul Qayyum, his former assistant coach of the Jammu and Kashmir Ranji Trophy team.
“Qayyum called me up in excitement and told me that it was all due to my efforts that this team has reached so far. I only told him that it’s nothing but sheer hard work of all the players that has made this happen,” Bedi, who coached J&K last season, told dna. “Believe me, this team will do well in the knockout stage because there are four or five outstanding boys in the squad who are waiting for their opportunity to play at the highest level. Their time has come now.”
Bedi has appealed to the J&K cricket administrators to handle the cricketing affairs more effectively so that players like Parvez Rasool, who are on the threshold of playing for India, get more opportunities to play alongside big names and teams.
“It’s just not Rasool, but there are so many other talented players who could make it big. Adil Rishi is a fine stroke-making opener, Mohammed Mudhasir has great future as pacer and Ram Dayal could be an answer to India’s quest for all-rounder, not forgetting Samiullah Beigh, who is the senior most player and a great source of motivation in the dressing room,” said the former India spinner.
Road to quarters
Beat Goa at Srinagar by three wickets
Lost to Himachal Pradesh at Dharamsala by an innings and 192 runs
Beat Andhra at Anantapur by 17 runs
Beat Kerala at Jammu by 278 runs
Lost to Maharashtra at Pune by nine wickets
Beat Assam at Jammu by nine wickets
Drew with Hyderabad at Jammu
Drew with Tripura at Agartala
QF line-up (January 8-12)
Mumbai vs Maharashtra in Mumbai
Bengal vs Railways in Kolkata
Karnataka vs Uttar Pradesh in Bangalore
Punjab vs Jammu and Kashmir in Baroda
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