IPL is over-hyped, believes Abhinav Bindra, who wants more recognition for other sports
IPL is over-hyped, believes Abhinav Bindra, who wants more recognition for other sports
When ace marksman Abhinav Bindra shoots be it from the rifle or his lip for that matter it more often than not hits bulls eye.
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Well Said: Olympic gold medallist Abhinav Bindra |
Yesterday, India's first individual Olympic gold medalist at Beijing 2008, took a swipe at the multimillion-dollar money-spinner, the Indian Premier League.
"The Indian Premier League is nothing but an over-hyped tournament. We have gone overboard with the whole thing," Bindra told MiD DAY on the day he was bestowed the Padma Bhushan, by President Pratibha Patil at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
Domestic tourney"The IPL is a simple domestic T20 cricket tournament. It is a nice evening entertainer," added Bindra, after claiming the country's third highest civilian honour after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan.
Bindra's comments are in line with those made by Union sports minister Dr MS Gill, who had said that India's first Olympic gold was a bigger achievement than Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men winning the Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007.
Bindra, a world champion shooter even before his Bejing brilliance was still a little known name until his medal-winning feat, while on the other hand, fringe players in the first edition the IPL last year earned maximum mileage for their brief cricketing heroics. However, Bindra clarified that his statements were merely general and that he held no grudge against the tournament.
"I've got nothing against cricket or the IPL and would not like to be misunderstood but the fact remains that we must have a balanced view about the tournament," added the Chandigarh sharpshooter, who hasn't used his rifle in a competitive event since August last year.
Proud IndianHowever, he now felt he was ready to get into the thick of things. "It's awards like the Padma Bhushan that make us athletes feel very proud of being Indian. It is a fitting reward for all the hardwork that has gone into achieving what I have. The results will always show, if not immediately then in some time.
"I'm definitely more confident of focusing all my energies towards winning many more golds for India," said the 26-year-old, who has made no bones of the fact that shooting as a sport in India still has a lot to achieve and that he's ready to ready to help provide the best facilities to the country's shooters.
"Hopefully, this will inspire more Indian sportsmen to strive hard to achieve global excellence," said Bindra, who recently also announced a plan of setting up 50 hi-tech schools across the country.
