Sourav Ganguly stands by Sarfraz Ahmed, says players like him aren’t born everyday

Pakistan cricket captain Sarfraz Ahmed has been the one who has given his side a stability of sort at the top after a while but two humiliating defeats in five days in the ongoing Asia Cup has brought him under a rain of severe criticism. Both his captaincy and batting came under question, especially after the nine-wicket rout Pakistan faced against a clinical India in Dubai in a Super Fours game on Sunday.

Ahmed failed to accelerate the scoring as he managed 44 off 66 balls with just two fours; was accused of running Babar Azam out and on the top of them, was criticised for electing to bat first on a wicket which seemed to ease out as the game progressed. However, the 31-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman found sympathy from across the border and it came from former India captain Sourav Ganguly.

Speaking to Pakistan’s Geo News programme ‘Pakistan-India Takra’, the 46-year-old former batsman said: “Sarfraz is a courageous player and the way he captained the team during the Champions Trophy last year was impeccable. He is a great captain and cricketers like him are not born everyday.”

Board and former players should back Sarfraz

Ganguly, one of the most successful captains India has produced in the game, said being a skipper himself, he knew how a team’s performance – good or bad – influences it. He advised Pakistan’s cricket board and former cricketers to stand behind Sarfraz for he felt the cricketer’s decisions have played a key role in Pakistan’s recent matches.

Pakistan have tasted considerable success under Ahmed’s captaincy in the recent past but the team found itself bouncing on a rough surface after they lost to India badly. They might still get a chance to rewrite the Champions Trophy script by taking on India in the final but for that, they have to beat Bangladesh in the final Super Fours game on Wednesday.

Ganguly, meanwhile, also expressed surprise that two to four new players are included in the Pakistani side for each series. About the Indian side, he said after the disappointing loss in the Test series in England, the Asia Cup is a crucial one for the likes of Rohit Sharma, who is leading India in the tournament; Shikhar Dhawan and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Rohit and Dhawan, however, have passed their tests with high numbers so far while Dhoni hasn’t had much chance with the bat in the tournament so far.

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