Sourav Ganguly: Without T20s, cricket cannot survive

Sourav Ganguly also backed MS Dhoni and said that his contributions should be respected.

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly today batted for Twenty20 tournaments, saying without it, the game of cricket could not survive. Replying to a specific question on cricketers playing continuous matches without any rest and also different formats, Ganguly told reporters, “Twenty20 is must for cricket. Without T20, cricket cannot survive,”

Asked about the Indian team’s performance in South Africa, he said it has been a good tour for them so far.

They played very well in the one-day series, he said.

“I hope they win the match (T20) on Saturday,” Ganguly said.

To another question on selection policy then and now, he said it was the same transparent one.

“It is the best of Indian selection policy.”

On curtailing the tenure of coaches abruptly, he expressed hope that it may not happen in future. When asked about young players getting an opportunity in Indian cricket, Ganguly said a lot of young players represent the country.

“We have Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya and others have come in to play in our Indian side. We have to give them time to become the likes of Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh.

“Sehwag and Harbhajan also developed over a period of time. Our young players will also do so,” he said.

Referring to World Cup winning skipper MS Dhoni, Ganguly said “Dhoni is very good in one-day matches and in T20. It is very hard to get past MS.”

He said Dhoni’s contributions should be respected.

“You got to respect the contributions made by him and others too will get an opportunity to shine.”

On the fitness of Indian cricketers, Ganguly said the Indian team is on par with international players.

Asked to compare Indian men and women cricket teams, he said “men are better.”

“Women are doing exceptionally well in cricket. Have you seen anyone hit bigger sixes than Harmanpreet Kaur? However, the men are better,” he quipped.

Ganguly was here to flag-off a walkathon as part of the All India Ophthalmology Conference as the brand ambassador of Essilor latest eyecare equipment and also to release posters of Pitchfest, organised by TiE providing platform for innovators and investors.