“Earlier, you would see only a few sports would be talked about, media coverage would only be for those,” the Indian cricket icon instructed the media right here after he was revealed because the principal advisor of the Midwicket Stories.

“Now all sports have got an outlet and exposure and because of the other sports, we are getting to see the (emergence of) stars.” The Little Master was brimming with pleasure as he witnessed Chopra’s triumphant second of changing into a world champion in Budapest.

“I bear in mind when he (Neeraj Chopra) had received the Tokyo Olympics gold, the India-England sequence was happening…

“I was watching from England, and I was prompted to sing a song ‘Mere desh ki dharti sona ugle…’ Yesterday, I experienced the same feeling,” he mentioned.

“We had seen Neeraj two years earlier when he won the gold medal in the Olympics. Last year he won a silver medal, but for him it was important to win the gold medal and with a long throw he did it,” Gavaskar mentioned.

“On the opposite hand, in badminton Worlds, Prannoy reached the semifinals and he defeated Viktor Axelsen. If you see, with the publicity that Indian sportspersons are getting…

“If you think about America and Australia as sporting countries, I feel that in 10-15 years’ time, India will also be called a sporting country,” he added.

The former India captain mentioned Chopra’s historic achievements will encourage others to take up javelin.

“It inspires other (athletes),” he mentioned. “You would have seen that on this World Championship it was not simply Neeraj, we had three throwers within the ultimate.

“When one athlete does well it gives encouragement to others to take up the sport as well. It was a joyous moment,” he added.

Gavaskar additionally backed Praggnanandhaa to win many accolades in his fledgling profession.

“Praggnanandhaa finished as the runner-up. He is just 18, going forward he can win many titles in the future,” Gavaskar mentioned.

‘Don’t underestimate Sri Lanka in Asia Cup’

The former India captain additionally spoke about cricket and mentioned Sri Lanka shouldn’t be forgotten amid the discuss of India-Pakistan rivalry within the Asia Cup.

“In the Asia Cup, we are talking about India-Pakistan rivalry… But don’t forget Sri Lanka are also there, and they have been winning the Asia Cup. The rivalry between these three countries is always something special,” he mentioned.

He additional refused to select his favourites for the World Cup semifinals saying he’s solely bothered about India’s performances.

“I am only interested about India, I am not bothered about the others making it to the semifinals,” he mentioned.

On the question of managing workloads of the Indian cricketers, Gavaskar mentioned will probably be essential to relaxation gamers who’ve niggles.

“Every particular person is aware of and understands his physique the very best. The physiotherapist additionally know. Players know the place they’ve a niggle and the place their physique is failing.

“It is necessary to rest that player because if you do not rest him for three-four days at that point in time, then that injury may aggravate,” he concluded.