Without T20s, cricket cannot survive: Sourav Ganguly

Coimbatore: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly on Friday batted for Twenty20 tournaments and said 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 in Coimbatore: “Twenty20 is must for cricket. Without T20s, 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 and the team played very well in the ODI series. “I hope they win the match (series-deciding T20I) on Saturday,” Ganguly said.

The former India captain felt that youngsters should be given a long rope to establish themselves as international cricketers.

“We have Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya and others have come in to play in the 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.

Among the senior players in the team, Ganguly believed that Dhoni continues to be a dominating force in limited-overs cricket.

“Dhoni is very good in one-day matches and in T20s. It is very hard to get past MS. You got to respect the contribution made by him. Others too will get an opportunity to shine.

The left-hander, who led India to the 2003 World Cup final, also reserved special praise for the T20I captain of the Indian women's team.

“Women are doing exceptionally well in cricket. Have you seen anyone hit bigger sixes than Harmanpreet Kaur?" he said.

Ganguly was in Coimbatore to flag-off a walkathon as part of the All India Ophthalmology Conference.