Former BCCI president Sourav Ganguly. File
| Photo Credit: PTI
Former captain Sourav Ganguly thinks the current Indian team is not only better than Pakistan but is also the favourite to win the ongoing Champions Trophy.
Ganguly, who played a lot against Pakistan, said the neighbouring country would need some special effort to beat India in their Group-A engagement on Sunday (February 23, 2025).
“India is a powerful white-ball team. In the last 25 years, India has lost only once to Pakistan in a world tournament. India is the favourite for this tournament. It won’t be easy for Pakistan,” said Ganguly, who was named the brand ambassador of construction chemical manufacturer Vura here on Friday.
According to Ganguly, India, after recording a comprehensive victory against Bangladesh in Dubai on Thursday, might not change its winning combination against Pakistan.
“Pakistan don’t play spin very well. India has quality spinners in Axar (Patel), (Ravindra) Jadeja and Kuldeep (Yadav). I presume this Dubai pitch will (assist) turn a bit…India will go with this combination.”
Ganguly predicted that pitches in Dubai would not be as batter-friendly as those in Pakistan. “The spinners will have a lot of say. The ILT20 was just played in Dubai. The pitches have been used. I don’t think we’ll see 300 (plus) scores in Dubai.”
Praising century maker Shubman Gill, Ganguly underlined that ‘India is a pool of talent.’
“There is enormous talent in this country in terms of white ball. The way Abhishek Sharma batted in the T20 series (against England) was unbelievable. There is no reason why he can’t play one-day cricket. The selectors and the coaches have the liberty to pick whoever they want because they are all good. India has five Shubhman Gills who can get hundreds and win matches.”
Reiterating that Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah needed each other’s support, Ganguly said, “I’m not surprised with Shami’s five wickets against Bangladesh. He will continue to lead the attack. Obviously, Bumrah is the best bowler in the world, but Shami is not far behind. The only thing is he stays fit and shoulders the responsibility like Bumrah did without Shami at the other end.”
Ganguly said there was little to choose between wicketkeeper-batters K.L. Rahul and Rishabh Pant.
He was hopeful that Virat Kohli, who got out to leg-spinner Rishad Hossain, would bounce back. “I’m sure he will be able to sort this problem out. In 81 international 100s, I’m sure he has scored runs against leg-spin,” said Ganguly.
Published – February 21, 2025 06:27 pm IST