/sportsinfo/media/member_avatars/image 59.png)
Follow Us/sportsinfo/media/media_files/iuu8yLpvRPukYuAxaq3R.png)
Sourav Ganguly (Source-BCCI)
Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly has made a huge statement ahead of the T20 World Cup final game on Saturday. India will take on South Africa in Barbados and look to end their 11-year wait to claim an ICC title.
During a chat with PTI, the former Indian star has backed Rohit Sharma and his team to come good. Team India has played two ICC finals under the leadership of Rohit Sharma and lost both. Their two losses, both against Australia were during the 2023 World Test Championships finals and the ODI World Cup later that year in Ahmedabad.
Speaking to PTI, Sourav Ganguly said “He has played two World Cup finals where he has gone into the final unbeaten. That speaks of his captaincy and leadership quality”. The former Indian skipper also took a swipe at Virat Kohli when he said “I'm not surprised because he became captain when I was the BCCI president and when Virat didn't want to captain India anymore”
Also Read: Rahul Dravid sheds light on India team performance for T20 World Cup 2024 tournament
Sourav Ganguly praises Rohit Sharma’s leadership
Team India entered the finals of the tournament after their win over England in the semi-finals in Guyana on Thursday. Rohit Sharma scored yet another half-century with the bat and helped India post a huge score on the board.
Sourav Ganguly during his chat with PTI also said “It took a lot of time to make him captain because he was not ready to captain. It took a lot of pushing from all of us to make him captain and I'm very happy to see the progress of Indian cricket under him”
Earlier this year, Mumbai Indians controversially decided to hand over the IPL captaincy to Hardik Pandya. This didn’t sit down well with many fans as the 5 time IPL winners ended the season in the bottom spot.
Under the captaincy of Rohit Sharma, Mumbai Indians won 5 IPL titles and one Champions League. This wasn’t lost on Sourav Ganguly when he said “Rohit has the record of winning five IPL titles, which is a huge achievement. Winning an IPL sometimes is more difficult. Don't misquote me, I'm not saying IPL is better than international cricket”
“But you have to win 16-17 (12-13) matches to win an IPL; here you need to win 8-9 matches to win a World Cup. The honour is more in winning the World Cup, and I hope Rohit does it tomorrow." Sourav Ganguly added while speaking to PTI.
It was at this point that Sourav Ganguly in jest added “I don't think he can lose two World Cup finals in seven (six) months. He will probably jump into the Barbados ocean if he loses two finals under his captaincy in seven months. He has led from the front and batted brilliantly, and I hope it continues tomorrow. Hope India finishes on the right side, and they should play with freedom. They have been the best side of the competition. I wish them luck, I wish they win. Hope they have a little bit of luck tomorrow because that is required to win big tournaments”