New Delhi: Former skipper Bishan Singh Bedi was a bold and sometimes rash voice in Indian cricket known as much for impetuous commentary on other players as his stellar left-arm spin. Bedi, who died aged 77 on Monday, claimed 266 wickets in 67 Tests, leading the team on 22 occasions after succeeding Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi as captain. His younger peers revered him as a grand statesman of the sport, never shy on offering trenchant opinions on issues plaguing the game, or backing other cricketers. “Critics would call Bishan a rebel. Wrong. To me, he was a cricketer who knew his rights well,” former captain Kapil Dev wrote in a book on Bedi. “He stood up for the cricketers, fighting for better match fees, travel facilities and accommodation… (He) made Indian cricket immensely proud.” But he could also be harsh in his pronouncements, and during his short stint as India coach he reportedly threatened to dump the team in the Pacific Ocean while returning from a humiliating loss to Australia in 1990.