Former Indian pacer Praveen Kumar has claimed that all the senior players during his time used to drink but then it tarnished their image. Praveen Kumar was one of India’s emerging pacers during the MS Dhoni era, who rose to fame with his memorable performances.
However, Praveen Kumar could only have a short stint with the Indian team and disappeared after India won the 2011 ICC ODI World Cup. Praveen Kumar was also part of the initial World Cup squad but was dropped due to a injury.
After his dismissal, his off-field behavior came into the spotlight. Reports alleged that Kumar had been in trouble due to his drinking habits and had also engaged in violent behaviour. He played his last international match in 2012, just five years after his debut.
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‘San Peetey The’: Praveen Kumar makes sensational claims about senior citizens
While speaking to The Lallantop, Praveen Kumar made sensational claims about senior citizens of his time. The former right-arm pacer has said that all the players in Indian cricket used to drink, but they always asked him not to.
“When the elders in the team said ‘drink nahi karna, yeh nahi karna, woh nahi karna’. All the cards are there. But there is something Badnaam says ‘PK toh karta hai’.
“Sab peete hai. (When I was on the team, the elders said: Don’t drink, don’t do this, don’t do that. Everyone does it but they tarnished my image by saying that I drink),” she said.
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When asked if players like Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar or Rahul Dravid told him to do it, Praveen Kumar refused to show any name on camera. However, he added that his image was tarnished by older people.
“Nahi. Naam nahi lena chahta camera pe. Pata sabko hai. (No, I don’t want his name to appear on camera. Everyone knows him.) Those who know me personally, know what I am like. A bad image has been created about me,” Kumar further said.
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Praveen Kumar played his last international match in 2012
Praveen Kumar played for India from 2007 to 2012. He represented India in 6 Tests, 68 ODIs and 10 T20Is, picking over 100 wickets in total. He also played in IPL for teams like Royal Challengers Bangalore, Punjab Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Gujarat Lions. He last played in the IPL in 2017.
Meanwhile, Kumar’s words came after a recent video of MS Dhoni went viral on social media. In the video, Dhoni can be seen smoking Hukkah. Fans are quite surprised after watching the video, which has created a stir among her fans.
