Deposed India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly on Thursday praised his successor Rahul Dravid and declared that he is prepared to play in any position and perform any role if reinstated to the national squad.
"Rahul Dravid is doing a great job as captain," Ganguly told newspersons in Kolkata after a practice session.
| |||||||||||
Is he eyeing the slot of an all-rounder to make a comeback to the squad?
"I have taken 14/15 wickets in the Duleep Trophy. I also scored a hundred. I am willing to play at any position. I am prepared to perform any role that the team wants me to," Ganguly said.
On whether his confidence was boosted by Board of Control for Cricket in India president Ranbir Singh Mahendra's comments that the doors of the Indian team have not been shut on him, Ganguly said, "I don't want to react to this. I only want to continue scoring runs. But yes, it does feel good to hear such encouraging words."
Cautious about courting controversy, Ganguly skipped queries on Virender Sehwag's form, and whether he would make any changes in the squad if he returns as captain.
"Performance of the team does not depend on the coach or captain or any individual player. All the players in the squad have to perform well for the team to come up with a good show," he said.
He, however, took head-on a query on criticism that he has problems with short deliveries, saying his record is there for all to see.
"Every batsman has his weak spot. But despite his weakness, if one has scored 14,000 to 15,000 runs in top class cricket, then I think nobody should complain," he said.
Ganguly said it is perfectly logical that performance should be the yardstick in deciding team compositions.
"Not only Sourav, Dravid or Sachin (Tendulkar); all the players have to perform well to be picked for the team."
More from rediff