Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has highlighted the importance of balancing red-ball and white-ball cricket among young players. The former BCCI president, who currently serves as the Director of Cricket of Delhi Capitals, expressed concern over his exclusion from Ranji Trophy matches in preparation for the Indian Premier League (IPL).
He emphasized that budding cricketers need experience in both the formats to hone their skills effectively. Ganguly, an important figure in Indian cricket, said that the neglect of red-ball cricket is contrary to the norms followed by players in the past. He instilled confidence in the BCCI to address this matter appropriately.
First class cricket and IPL can be played together – Sourav Ganguly
“He can play both red ball and white ball,” Sourav Ganguly was quoted as saying by Times of India. Along with a stint in first class cricket, there can also be an IPL career. IPL starts one month after first class cricket ends. I don’t see any problem. Many top quality players play Test cricket and white ball cricket. You look at Kohli, Rohit, Bumrah, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant.”
He further said, “On the world stage, there is Mitchell Marsh. He is now Australia’s leading red-ball player. Harry Brook plays cricket with the red ball. David Warner played a lot of Test cricket but he was one of the best white ball players. Even in my days, Sachin, Rahul and I played Test cricket and then played white-ball cricket. There is no reason to say that you can play one format and not the other.”
Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were dropped from BCCI’s central contract for not playing first class cricket. Kishan, who took a break due to personal reasons during the South Africa tour, recently returned to action in the DY Patil T20 tournament. On the other hand, despite being declared fit by the NCA, Iyer did not play for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy.