Look beyond Tendulkar now: Kapil

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Former India captain Kapil Dev on Wednesday advised Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men not to depend too much on Sachin Tendulkar and asked the youngsters to shoulder responsibility during the four-Test series against England starting in Ahmedabad on Thursday.

“Sachin will be the centre of attraction. The focus will be on him. But you cannot rely only on Sachin. He is an important player, but it is the time when youngsters will have to shoulder the responsibility,” Kapil told in an exclusive interview to PTI Bhasha.

After receiving a 0-4 drubbing at the hands of England late last year, India is looking to exploit the home advantage to its maximum against the visitors. However, Kapil warned that the move may “backfire“.

“If you are playing on a turning wicket, toss plays an important role. The team that wins the toss gets an opportunity to play on the fresh wicket. You should always prepare the wicket as per team’s strength. But a rank turner might backfire,” the veteran all-rounder said.

Kapil, meanwhile, said that the upcoming series would be a test for India’s opening pair of Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag, which failed to give the country a solid platform in the recent past.

“Sehwag and Gambhir are big players; they hold a lot of importance. However, they have been struggling since last 15-20 Tests and it is really terrifying that what will happen if they don’t score at the top.

“Every player has a reputation and on that basis a team is selected but if they don’t perform the team might have to struggle. Our opening is weak. If we get a good beginning, we can dominate England,” he said.

The 53-year-old, who will be starting a fresh innings as a Hindi commentator for broadcasters Star Cricket during the series, added that it will be a tough task for the hosts to win the series with a big margin.