Kapil Dev: ‘Had I played golf with cricket, I would have scored another 2,000 runs’

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Nihal Koshie speaks to Kapil Dev to find the correlation between the two sports Written by: Nihal Koshie5 min readApr 21, 2026 07:00 AM IST Considered one of the greatest all-rounders of all time, Kapil Dev has turned to golf after ending his illustrious cricketing career. (Express Photo by Kevin D'Souza/Express Archive photo) Make us preferred source on Google Whatsapp twitter Facebook Reddit PRINT By Kapil Dev After a glittering career in which he led India to victory in the 1983 World Cup as captain and a champion all-rounder, Kapil Dev is also an avid golfer post-retirement and currently the president of the Professional Golf Tour of India. India’s OG golfing cricketer, or cricketing golfer, talks about the similarities. The timing and grip is most important in cricket and golf. If you don’t have timing, you end up hitting the ball too hard. If your grip is proper, then the impact is beautiful, and things change. The second most important thing is the belief within the players that they can do that (hit sixes). In our time, the belief wasn’t there. A 15-year-old boy doesn’t have that much strength to do that (hit sixes), but he has belief. Their equipment is ready, and then on top of that, timing is important. You don’t have to be Chris Gayle to hit very big sixes. Today, because of technology, bats have become much more refined. In golf, it’s much more technical because it’s a stationary ball. I played cricket, and I played golf. The balance of the body is very important. When you make an impact, your body should be ready. There are some players who hit through cover, but their legs are in the air. But Virender Sehwag could hit with ease and Sachin Tendulkar too, because their base was very strong. For a cricketer or a golfer, if the base is strong, the impact is much harder. If there is balance of the feet, then the hips, shoulders, arms everything comes into play. Some people’s arm swing is bigger, some people’s body swing is bigger. Yashasvi Jaiswal has a full body swing. There has to be a follow-through in cricket and golf. But some cricketers can hit without a full follow-through, too. Yuvraj (Singh) played two types of shots, one in which he stops his bat after impact and one with the full follow-through. If your hip, body and shoulder are in rhythm, then controlling the bigger muscles is easier. The hip, the shoulder and the back are all big muscles. The forearm is a smaller muscle. In golf, you need a full swing, but they also say the point of impact is important. The two games are different, but eye-hand coordination is important in both. Over the years, when you play cricket, your hand-eye coordination improves. You don’t need to be Dara Singh. See Hardik Pandya hit the ball, and you know he has strength and hand-eye coordination. Hockey players have a swing that is closer to golf than a cricketer. Because the hockey ball is also on the ground and so is the golf ball. I played golf after I stopped playing cricket. But even cricketers in the past would play golf. Gary Sobers used to play all the time. Don Bradman used to play golf. There is a photograph of Bradman playing golf. Indians never used to play, I don’t know why. They liked to sit in the room. Golf can 100 percent help a cricketer. Had I played golf when playing cricket, I would have scored another 2,000 runs minimum. Because it improves focus, coordination and timing. I don’t have words to express the amount of pleasure golf has given me. Hitting accurately is a very big challenge in golf. Because in golf, your target is very small and you have to hit towards the target. So you have to be very steady with your body, your mind, your hand-eye coordination, all the time. Everybody can hit a stationary ball if they have the timing and the right swing. But hitting where you exactly intend it to go becomes difficult in golf. In cricket, you can hit 360 degrees, if not over cover then over mid-off. Golf is not about 360-degree hitting. You have to hit it perfectly. You have to adjust to the weights but I don’t think it is a very big challenge. Certain people can write well in Hindi and English or certain people can sing well, be it Classical or rock music. Certain people have the ability to play different sports well and it depends on your natural ability. The one challenge I see is that if you have played cricket for India and think you will play golf in the same manner it is not going to happen. Your mindset is that ‘I represented the country in cricket’ but if you take up golf and think you will do the similar thing, it is not possible. Nihal Koshie is an Associate Editor and sports writer at The Indian Express. He is best known for his in-depth reporting and investigative work that often explores the intersection of sports and social issues. He is also a key member of the sports desk, which is based out of The Indian Express' office in Noida. Professional Background Role: Associate Editor (Sports) at The Indian Express. Key Achievements: He is a two-time winner of the prestigious Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism. He won the RNG award for 'Sports Journalism' for 2019 for his exclusive interview and follow up stories with sprinter Dutee Chand, who became the first Indian athlete to say she was in a same-sex relationship. He won his second RNG award in the 'Investigative Reporting' for 2023 for a series of exclusive stories related to sexual harassment charges levelled against WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh by the country's top women wrestlers. Expertise: While he covers major sports, he is particularly recognized for his extensive reporting on Athletics, investigative stories and long-form news features. Recent Notable Topics & Articles (Late 2025) Nihal Koshie’s recent work reflects a focus on investigative and human-interest stories Recent investigative pieces: He recently wrote a profile of an Indian teenager serving a jail sentence in Kenya after being embroiled in a doping scandal while chasing "Olympic dreams." Wrestling: He continues to track the political and social fallout of the Indian wrestling protests, including the recent public appearances of Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and the political career of wrestler Vinesh Phogat. Recent long-form features: The story of the rise of Kranti Gaud, the young fast bowler who was a key member of the ICC women's World Cup-winning team; The physics and science behind modern cricket bats Podcast Presence He is a guest and contributor to the "Game Time" podcast by The Indian Express, where he provides technical and social analysis of current sporting events. Experience: 24+ years Previous experience: Times of India (2001-2005), Daily News and Analysis (2005 to 2010) Nihal joined The Indian Express in May, 2010 Social Media X ( formerly Twitter) : @nkoshie You can follow his latest work and full archive on his official author profile. ... Read More Stay updated with the latest sports news across Cricket, Football, Chess, and more. Catch all the action with real-time live cricket score updates and in-depth coverage of ongoing matches.