Shoaib Akhtar hails Sourav Ganguly's era as captain, showers praises

Former Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Akhtar hailed BCCI President-elect Sourav Ganguly and said that it was good news as the former Indian skipper was instrumental in changing the shape of Indian cricket ever since he took over as the captain. The Rawalpindi express heaped praises on Sourav Ganguly, crediting him for introducing many young faces in the Indian team such as Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, and Virender Sehwag that changed the landscape of Indian cricket. Shoaib Akhtar firmly expressed his belief in Sourav Ganguly to make a difference, in what he claimed, was a new era of cricket. Shoaib Akhtar took to his YouTube channel to pay his tributes and congratulate 'The Prince of Kolkata' Sourav Ganguly for becoming the BCCI President-elect. 

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Shoaib Akhtar hails Sourav Ganguly's era as Indian skipper

Shoaib Akhtar credited Sourav Ganguly for his stint as the Indian captain and revealed that he had underestimated the Indian side before Sourav Ganguly took over the reins. Shoaib Akhtar admitted that he believed Pakistan could lose to India after Sourav Ganguly took over as skipper and changed the setup of Indian cricket, giving more opportunities to young faces. Terming Sourav Ganguly as a cricketer who 'thrived by the longer format of the game', Shoaib Akhtar believes that Test cricket can be saved by a cricketer like Sourav Ganguly and that there were many more things which he wants the former Indian captain to look into such as the return of bodyline bowling. Shoaib Akhtar also addressed the fall-out between Sourav Ganguly and former coach Greg Chappel and said that it was unfair to have treated the former skipper in that manner especially during the last days of his career. The former Pakistan pacer said that Sourav Ganguly had an 'eye for spotting' talent' and was an exceptional leader. 

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Sourav Ganguly to be elected unanimously 

Sourav Ganguly had filed his nomination for the post on Monday and will be elected unanimously for the position. After filing his nomination, Sourav Ganguly said that his priority is to look at the first-class cricket in the country. Ganguly though has time only till July 2020 when his term ends due to mandatory cooling-off period according to the new rules set down by the Supreme Court. As per the rules, an administrator can only serve for six years in a row. Ganguly has been holding various positions in the CAB for the last five years.

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