Kapil Dev: Respect Sachin Tendulkar's opinion about me as coach

Kapil Dev and Sachin Tendulkar as coach and captain in 1999

New Delhi, Nov 12 (IANS) Former India cricket captain Kapil Dev on Wednesday said he respect's Sachin Tendulkar's opinion about him as coach of the cricket team but refused to be drawn into a controversy with him by counter-commenting on the sensitive topic.

Sachin in his autobiography "Playing It My Way" has said that Kapil in his tenure as the coach of the national team "disappointed" him.

Kapil coached the team from September 1999 to September 2000, during which India lost its first home series in 13 years. India managed only one victory in three Test series, lost five and won just once in eight Tests with Kapil as coach. In One-Day Internationals (ODI), India won only nine of 25 matches under him.

"It is his opinion. As long as it is his opinion, it is fine with me. Everybody is entitled to one's opinion. I respect that," Kapil said on the sidelines of a digital programme here.

"If someone has to sensationalise it, he is free to do that. I don't have anything to say or add to it."

He also spoke of his willingness to accept Prime Minister Narendra Modi's invitation to tour Australia.

Modi invited Kapil and former captain Sunil Gavaskar to be part of his tour to Australia on Monday. Modi is scheduled to leave for Down Under on November 14 and is currently taking part in the ASEAN-India summit in Myanmar.

"I am happy that PM has invited me. I will gladly accept the offer. That is the least I can do. I am always ready to help if the government or the BCCI asks me. I will always willingly participate to help my country in any which way," the former cricketer said.

He also said that these invitational tours can help develop the nation in several capacities and "not just in cricket".