Sourav Ganguly terms current situation 'grave', recalls lack of excitement with no crowds

The current coronavirus pandemic has brought various sporting competitions across the globe to a standstill. One of them was cricket's biggest domestic T20 league, the Indian Premier League. BCCI President Sourav Ganguly claimed that the Indian board will face massive financial losses if the league does not take place this year. Sourav Ganguly mentioned that the IPL cancellation would result in losses amounting to ₹4,000 Crore at least. The former Indian captain went on to address the current India lockdown situation while also talking about the possibility of the IPL being played behind closed doors sometime later this year.

Also Read | Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly dining out in their 20s is a treat for every 90s kid

Sourav Ganguly grateful to Kolkata Police amid ongoing India lockdown

Also Read | Harbhajan Singh joins Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly in mocking ICC's ODI cricket rules

Sourav Ganguly calls India lockdown situation 'grave' 

While speaking to Mid Day, Sourav Ganguly labelled the present situation in India as 'grave'. He also added that playing the IPL in empty stadiums is an extremely tricky scenario given the current government guidelines. The former India captain recalled his own experience of playing at his hometown Kolkata in a nearly empty stadium during an Asian Test Championship match against Pakistan in 1999, admitting that the match did not excite him much. However, the BCCI chief also added that social distancing rules must be followed in the future while hosting any major tournament in order to further prevent the spread of the virus.

When it comes to the tour of Australia later this year, Ganguly categorically claimed that playing 5 Tests at one venue is not a feasible option for the BCCI as quarantine guidelines and the prospect of a longer tour does not make it a favourable proposition for India. 

Also Read | Sourav Ganguly can easily be made angry: Russell Arnold recalls 2002 CT final 'fight'

Also Read | Ravi Shastri calls for IPL over T20 World Cup, wants BCCI to improve domestic cricket

Sourav Ganguly continues to remain in the news apart from being BCCI President

Sourav Ganguly recently poked fun at ICC's modern ODI batting rules, replying to a tweet by his former teammate and opening partner Sachin Tendulkar. Fans seemed to agree with the duo that they would have scored another 4,000 runs together with those rules in their times. Ganguly and Tendulkar remain the only pair to score 6,000 runs together in ODIs.

Also Read | BCCI launches special app to help cricketers in remaining happy and fit during lockdown