Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], Former captain Sourav Ganguly has said that he does not want to give any advice to Rohit Sharma ahead of the crucial T20 World Cup final against South Africa and extends his good wishes to him.
He praised the team's planning and expected India to finish on the right side tomorrow.
Ganguly captained India in the 2000, 2002 and 2003 ICC tournaments. In the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy, the Indian team emerged victorious. But in the remaining two, the Ganguly-led team fell short and ended up losing.
"I don't want to advise him. I captained India in three tournaments and lost two. In one, I was a joint winner, so I don't want to advise him anything and just wish him the best of luck." Ganguly said during an event in Kolkata.
India came close on a couple of occasions to ending their hiatus from lifting an ICC World Cup trophy. After their success in 2011, India lost the final of the 2014 T20 World Cup. In 2016, the West Indies defeated them in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup. In 2023, Australia defeated India to lift their record-extending sixth ODI World Cup trophy.
India has a chance to finally end the wait to clinch the coveted prize by defeating South Africa in the final of the tournament in Barbados on Saturday.
The Indian team has been criticized by some sections of the fans for failing to end the drought.
Ganguly offered a different perspective on India's run in ICC tournaments and feels that the team has dominated the competitions and managed to reach the finals in several editions.
"I see it differently; at least you reach the final. You can only win once you reach the final. The positive thing is that India is not eliminated. The second positive thing is that they are dominating. You saw in the World Cup ago "For seven months, they were the best team. Although they lost to Australia in the final, they were better than Australia throughout the tournament. Tomorrow they will go into the final undefeated," added the former Indian captain.
Ganguly went on to praise the way Rohit batted. In the last two matches, Rohit has shown his 'Hitman' form against cricket giants Australia and England.
Against the Baggy Greens, he scored a quickfire 92 off just 41 deliveries, laying the foundation for India's success in Super 8s.
He once again raised the temperature against defending champions England with a spirited 57 off 39 deliveries. His knock set the tone for India and played a crucial role in ending England's title defence.
"They have been the best team in the competition. I hope they have a bit of luck tomorrow because that is necessary to win big tournaments. Rohit has a record of winning five IPLs, which is a great effort. The honor of winning the La Copa of the World is more, and I hope Rohit does it. From the beginning I said they should play freely, and he (Rohit) has done that himself in the tournament. He has led from the front, batted brilliantly and captained brilliantly." Ganguli said.
One of the key reasons behind India's success in the second half of the tournament has been the spinners. India picked a spin-laden team, which included Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel.
Kuldeep was introduced to the playing XI in the Super 8 in place of Mohammed Siraj. In four matches, the 'Chinese' has a belt of ten wickets with an average of 13.54 and an economy of 6.20.
"The wicket has helped the spinners in the West Indies, that's why teams have played with more spinners. India prepared that way. They brought in four spinners so they knew the wicket would turn. They are all world-class spinners. I am happy "Axar and Kuldeep are doing very well together. I hope India finishes well tomorrow," Ganguly said.
Since South Africa has also not lost a match, the T20 World Cup final will be a clash between the two unbeaten teams in the tournament.
He praised the team's planning and expected India to finish on the right side tomorrow.
Ganguly captained India in the 2000, 2002 and 2003 ICC tournaments. In the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy, the Indian team emerged victorious. But in the remaining two, the Ganguly-led team fell short and ended up losing.
"I don't want to advise him. I captained India in three tournaments and lost two. In one, I was a joint winner, so I don't want to advise him anything and just wish him the best of luck." Ganguly said during an event in Kolkata.
India came close on a couple of occasions to ending their hiatus from lifting an ICC World Cup trophy. After their success in 2011, India lost the final of the 2014 T20 World Cup. In 2016, the West Indies defeated them in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup. In 2023, Australia defeated India to lift their record-extending sixth ODI World Cup trophy.
India has a chance to finally end the wait to clinch the coveted prize by defeating South Africa in the final of the tournament in Barbados on Saturday.
The Indian team has been criticized by some sections of the fans for failing to end the drought.
Ganguly offered a different perspective on India's run in ICC tournaments and feels that the team has dominated the competitions and managed to reach the finals in several editions.
"I see it differently; at least you reach the final. You can only win once you reach the final. The positive thing is that India is not eliminated. The second positive thing is that they are dominating. You saw in the World Cup ago "For seven months, they were the best team. Although they lost to Australia in the final, they were better than Australia throughout the tournament. Tomorrow they will go into the final undefeated," added the former Indian captain.
Ganguly went on to praise the way Rohit batted. In the last two matches, Rohit has shown his 'Hitman' form against cricket giants Australia and England.
Against the Baggy Greens, he scored a quickfire 92 off just 41 deliveries, laying the foundation for India's success in Super 8s.
He once again raised the temperature against defending champions England with a spirited 57 off 39 deliveries. His knock set the tone for India and played a crucial role in ending England's title defence.
"They have been the best team in the competition. I hope they have a bit of luck tomorrow because that is necessary to win big tournaments. Rohit has a record of winning five IPLs, which is a great effort. The honor of winning the La Copa of the World is more, and I hope Rohit does it. From the beginning I said they should play freely, and he (Rohit) has done that himself in the tournament. He has led from the front, batted brilliantly and captained brilliantly." Ganguli said.
One of the key reasons behind India's success in the second half of the tournament has been the spinners. India picked a spin-laden team, which included Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel.
Kuldeep was introduced to the playing XI in the Super 8 in place of Mohammed Siraj. In four matches, the 'Chinese' has a belt of ten wickets with an average of 13.54 and an economy of 6.20.
"The wicket has helped the spinners in the West Indies, that's why teams have played with more spinners. India prepared that way. They brought in four spinners so they knew the wicket would turn. They are all world-class spinners. I am happy "Axar and Kuldeep are doing very well together. I hope India finishes well tomorrow," Ganguly said.
Since South Africa has also not lost a match, the T20 World Cup final will be a clash between the two unbeaten teams in the tournament.
