Kapil Dev has congratulated the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for taking the “much-needed” strict step of directing the national cricketers to devote time to domestic cricket.

Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer were on Wednesday excluded from the BCCI’s central contracts after ignoring the Board’s diktat to play in the Ranji Trophy. The decision evoked mixed reactions with some former players like Irfan Pathan saying that the Board hasn’t been equally strict with a few others.

“Yes, few players will suffer, kuch logon ko taqleef hogi, hone do... lekin desh se badhkar koi nahi hai (some people will feel hurt but let it be because nobody is bigger than the country). Well done,” Kapil said.

“I congratulate the BCCI for taking the much-needed step to protect the status of domestic cricket. I was sad to see domestic cricket being given the skip by players once they had established themselves in international cricket,” the captain of the 1983 World Cup-winning side observed in his statement.

Kapil said that it was the duty of the established players to support the game in the domestic circuit. “I have always believed in the process of international players making themselves available to play for their respective states. It helps them extend their support to domestic players. Also, it is a nice way to pay back for the services rendered by the state association in grooming a player,” he said.