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In 1986 Dawood Ibrahim Wanted To Bribe Team India. Kapil Dev Gave The Most Badass Reply.

byStorypickers
28th November 2015
2 minute read

Dawood’s operations extend from the traditional run of extortions, narcotics dealings and contract killings to cricket betting and match-fixing.

In 1986, when India was touring Sharjah, India’s most wanted Dawood Ibrahim came inside the dressing room and offered the players a Toyota each if they managed to beat Pakistan the next day.

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Former BCCI secretary Jaywant Lele mentioned the incident in his book, ‘I was There — Memoirs of a Cricket Administrator’.

‘A businessman said, if the Indian team becomes champion here, I shall present a Toyota car to each team member, including officials, at their doorsteps in India. As bad luck would have it, India lost the tournament. Australia were declared champions on the basis of a higher run rate, as Australia, England and India earned equal points! After the results were declared most team members were not in tears, but that man was. After a long gap, we came to know that the man who met us in Sharjah in 1987 was Dawood Ibrahim, the alleged mastermind of the dastardly Mumbai blasts in 1993. The matter of that contact with us somehow surfaced during police investigations and I was taken aback. When the police interrogated me, I trembled. However, I frankly and matter-of-fact admitted we met, and told them at that time we had naturally no idea about his background or future activities, and did not even know his name. I added that I had met the man there for the first and last time and I had even forgotten the incident. I could not have recognised him thereafter! The police fortunately believed me.’

 

Kapil Paaji was not in the dressing room at the time because he had gone out to address the press conference. Meanwhile, Mehmood introduced him to the cricketers as a big businessman from Dubai.

Kapil Dev, by virtue of his simplicity and sheer honesty, has got a respectable place in the history of cricket. His straight forward approach is appreciated by one and all.

 

Apparently, the then Indian captain came back and asked Dawood to get out of the dressing room.

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Believe me or not, he actually said this. He is known to be a humble guy who always speaks inside out – without any fear or favour.

 

He didn’t choose the Thug life. The Thug life chose him.

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Jokes apart, true to the image of an honest, sentimental and open-hearted person, he has been very vocal against spot-fixing and has always stressed that in this cricket-mad country, it is imperative to keep the game of cricket clean and away from any controversy.

His real success is in staying grounded and being aware of the real perspective of life. All done with that famous big smile and a very warm heart.

Good man indeed. 🙂

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