'Cricket Gave Me Friends, Golf Gave Me...': Kapil Dev Opens Up On Life, Winter Food And Sports Lessons

Former Indian cricket legend Kapil Dev opened up in a candid conversation with NDTV, exploring his journey across cricket, his passion for golf, cherished winter foods, and the life lessons that sports have instilled in him.

With winter in full swing in North India, the interview began on a delectable note as Kapil talked about seasonal treats. When asked what "pet pooja" (indulgence) was happening currently, he smiled and said, "Everything. Oh, I think winter is the time in Delhi and in North India you should eat kulcha, chana, saag, parathas. I think in winter you can digest much better."

However, he was quick to draw a distinction between cricket and golf days. Comparing cricket’s intensity to golf’s leisure, Kapil highlighted, "This is six hours, very leisure, walking, enjoying yourself. If I have to run, I will not eat this. When you’re walking and you’re playing, you still, you can manage to eat something and cheat yourself."

On the perfect weather for playing golf, he said, "A little more 12 degrees to 14 degrees is the ideal time to play golf. But again, you don’t get everything. You don’t expect God will give you everything. Whatever you have, you have to enjoy with that."

On the NDTV Pro-Am and corporate golf, Kapil said it allows hardworking corporate people to express and enjoy themselves during weekends, adding, "I mean, olden days, nobody used to come out and play there. Now, there is sports, not only golf. There's so many other sports. Come out, enjoy yourself, express yourself, rather than sitting on a desk whole day working."

On the personal impact of golf, Kapil remarked, “Cricket gave me fame, but golf gave me friends… in cricket, you play cricket and that’s it your bus, your dressing room, your hotel. Here it’s nothing like that. You meet different people, you discuss about life, you discuss business... Rather than you are teaching, you are learning yourself.”

He framed sport as a win and loss in life, “You win and you lose. You take it everything in the same stride. You make a 100, you make a zero, but next day you come back to the cricket ground, golf course. That’s what the sports teach you. Never take a defeat. There is the next moment where you can come out, express yourself, and you can achieve much more than that."

Before teeing off in the golf match, Kapil ended the interview answering the question whether he will check the scorecard of India vs South Africa test match currently happening. He said, "I think I've done that. I will see in the evening. I will enjoy that. But more important is, can I live for the moment? Yes, I will come to know in the evening. And that's more important than watching all the time."