Seeking to remove "misconceptions" that she had something against cricket, Indian Sports Minister Uma Bharti on Wednesday expressed the wish that the game may prosper without commercial considerations spoiling it.

"Even my brother feels that I have something against it. But I want to clear that. I want the game to flourish," Bharti said while inaugurating Bishen Singh Bedi Cricket Trust's annual camp being held in collaboration with the Sports Authority of India at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi.

But, she said, the game must be played in the right spirit and commercial considerations should not spoil it. She said the recent match-fixing controversy dented the image of a few cricketers but "happily not of the game itself".

Drawing the analogy of the past when the guru used to teach his wards in the sylvan surroundings of forests, the Minister said she was happy that Bedi was teaching his 75 young students at the beautiful Nehru Stadium.

"I am happy Bedi is giving back to the game some of what he got from it," she said and added that former India captain Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, who was also present, and Bedi were heroes even for the present day youngsters because "they played the game with passion and for the love of it".

Pataudi, considered the legendary left-arm spinner's mentor, described Bedi as a good teacher and said though the six-week training period was not a long time for the trainees, "you must all go back wiser from the experience".

"We are happy cricket has gained immense popularity but it was inevitable that it faced some tough times recently. I hope these are behind us now," Pataudi added. Bedi said "we are not here to churn out just cricketers but to make them good citizens of India".

© PTI