'Our Country Will Win Gold In Making Excuses..'- Sunil Gavaskar Slams Indian Athletes Over Olympics Disappointment
Sunil Gavaskar and Lakshya Sen
Former India opener turned presenter Sunil Gavaskar is known for not mincing his words and often slams below-average performance across sports.
In the latest events, Gavaskar broke silence on the controversy surrounding former India badminton star Prakash Padukone. The veteran shuttler remarked that the players too should take responsibility for their defeats. His remarks came after Lakshya Sen failed to win a medal for India at the Olympics 2024 despite reaching the semis.
Padukone received a lot of flak as several athletes slammed him for throwing Sen under the bus. In the latest events, Gavaskar has hit back at Padukone's critics and remarked that the only place Indians can win gold is by making excuses.
"He has always been reticent and publicity-shy, and he goes about his life with as much quiet as his famous dribble at the net. Therefore, his frank comments after the badminton disappointment came as a surprise to so many who have known him over the years to keep his counsel and not say much. It also stirred up a debate where the majority tried, as is the modern way, to take the side of a current would-be champion and not that of a past-proven world champion. Making excuses is where our country will win gold medals every single time, so the debate around his assessment was more about that than looking without tinted glasses," he said.
"And what did he say? He said that the players today get all the backing and facilities from their Federations and the government too. Therefore, they should take responsibility for their performances too. It was a point well-made and well-articulated too, without pointing fingers at anybody, "said Gavaskar.
Meanwhile, Gavaskar also rated Prakash Padukone as the greatest sportsperson India has ever produced.
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