Dasgupta said Arjuna Ranatunga's comments disrespectful to the Indian cricket team.
Former India wicketkeeper-batsman and commentator Deep Dasgupta hit back at the former Sri Lanka captain Arjuna Ranatunga over his recent remark on the Indian cricket team ahead of the limited-overs series between Sri Lanka and India beginning on July 13.
With Indian stars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah are in England for the recently-concluded WTC Final and upcoming five-match Test series, the Indian team management sent a team with several young cricketers to Sri Lanka for a limited-overs series.
Expressing his discontent over India’s move, Ranatunga had recently slammed the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) for agreeing to host the “second-string” Indian team for the three T20Is and as many as T20Is this month.
He also pointed out that India sent their best team to England and sent a weaker side to Sri Lanka for the white-ball series, saying it is an insult to Sri Lankan cricket.
Reacting to Ranatunga's comments, Dasgupta said he has a lot of respect for the former Sri Lankan skipper, but his statement was unfair and disrespectful to Team India while suggesting him to focus on Sri Lankan cricket since their recent poor run at the highest level doesn’t help world cricket.
Dasgupta said on his YouTube channel: “This particular statement is not fair. I do understand that some of the top players like Virat, Rohit, Bumrah, Pant aren’t there. But if you take them out of the equation, you see most of the players in Sri Lanka are capped players. By no stretch of the imagination, I would call it a ‘B’ side.”
The commentator further said, “Secondly, calling a national side a ‘B’ side is disrespectful. If you are representing your country, then calling that side a ‘B’ side is disrespectful. It means you aren’t giving those players due respect and you are pulling them down. Also, most of the capped players will play the matches, apart from someone like a Varun Chakravarthy who is uncapped.”
He concluded, “I have a lot of respect for Arjuna Ranatunga. I think he is one of the best captains I have ever seen. He has taken Sri Lankan cricket to great heights. But it is time Arjuna Ranatunga should focus on Sri Lanka cricket because that will help world cricket. The way Sri Lanka has been playing for the last few years, that doesn’t help world cricket. A strong Sri Lankan team will help world cricket.”