They have set the benchmark high: Kapil Dev hails unbelievable Indian pace attack

Chennai: Legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev on Wednesday hailed the current Indian pace attack's performance in the Test series in Australia and termed it "unbelievable."

"Beautiful, fantastic... In the last 15 months no other team has done so well in pace bowling. The Indian team has done so well, I don't have to say anything, they have done so well... It is unbelievable," he said, replying to a question on the performance of the present Indian pace attack.

Asked about Virat Kohli's on-field aggression which has drawn flak from some quarters, on the sidelines of a function here, the captain of the 1983 World Cup winning team, said it didn't matter as long as he and the team were performing.

"Was (MS) Dhoni being so quiet was good for the game or bad for the game? Every leader comes out with his own thinking, it is up to you to take it. As long as he is performing on the field, you cannot expect two people to be the same.

"Why should we even compare or judge somebody. Judge his performance on the field how good he is... Your liking and my liking can be different, it makes no difference. As long as the Indian team is winning that's what I look for," he said.

On the number of fast bowlers coming through for India in the recent past, the legendary all-rounder said it was fantastic and had not happened overnight but due to a lot of hard work.

"It is different (to see fast bowlers coming through in India). An Indian fast bowler coming out and playing so hard, sometime you feel how the hell they are doing all that. But I think it is good to have change of culture, a fast bowler is fantastic.

"It is not the last two years, the last 20 years hard work you can see the result. Result doesn't come overnight. Now we set the benchmark very high. Now you will find more fast bowlers keep on coming, better players will keep on coming. Because the trend of Indian cricket is moving on the better side," added Kapil.

Kapil also stressed on the importance of preparation for players and said it was crucial to practice hard and sincerely,

"Every match you have to prepare yourself, you don't say because of Test match I have to prepare more. When you start thinking Test match is there, you are putting more pressure. You are not going to deliver the best. Your effort should be sincere and then leave it that day you play. Hard practice, sincere effort is important.

"Virat Kohli is such a good player. The last Test he got zero, he had no intention to get zero but good players also make zero but hard work should be seen on the field and that's what matters," he added.