Recently-retired Sri Lankan spin great Muttiah Muralitharan responded to long-time critic Bishan Singh Bedi on Thursday, calling the former India captain an “ordinary bowler” and a “controversy monger”.
Murali, who has been at the receiving end of Bedi’s jibes for almost a decade, having been likened to a “javelin thrower” and repeatedly called a “chucker”, said Bedi would have been thrashed had he been playing in the modern era. “I saw some of his bowling of his playing days. If he had played in the modern era, he would have got hammered every ball,” Murali was quoted as saying.
Murali said Bedi was not in the league of Chandrashekhar, Venkat-araghavan and Prasanna. “He did not have any variation. I don’t think he even comes to a contest on that. He just bowled left-arm spin and the pitch did the variation for him,” said Murali.
Asked for his reaction, Bedi said, “I don’t want to react. Don’t want to comment ... You know my views. I don’t want to stoop to his level. I don’t call Murali a chucker. He is a chucker.”
Prasanna said Murali’s attack was “totally uncalled for”.
“Murali should have been a little more mature. He just can’t make such loose comments that anybody could have achieved Bishen’s feat,” Prasanna said.