Published: Jul 07, 2013, 01:43 PM (IST)
Edited: Jul 07, 2013, 01:43 PM (IST)
Sourav Ganguly will be at Lord’s during the second Ashes Test (July 18-22) and if the Test goes into final day, it will also mark his Test debut © Getty Images
Kolkata: Jul 7, 2013
Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly favours England over Australia in the upcoming Ashes series, stating the hosts will win 3-1 over the visitors.
“It’ll be 3-1 for England who are now a seriously good team. They are the favourites by far. I am giving Australia one Test because they are a competitive team,” he told Hindustan Times.
“It’s not a question of Australia being unprepared or under-prepared. They are not the same side they used to be. If you don’t have the quality, you won’t get the results. It’s as simple as that. It’s not just about preparation all the time. Of course, you need to prepare but you also need to have the quality.”
Ganguly will be at Lord’s during second Ashes Test (July 18-22). If the Test goes into final day, it will also mark the debut of one of the most successful India skipper. Ganguly scored 131 on Test debut.
Ganguly feels the retirement of key players has affected the Australian team’s set-up.
“Natural talent and getting gifted players is something that cannot happen with planning. Planning can happen only when you have the ammunition. You cannot fight an AK 47 with a pistol, can you?” he said.
The 40-year-old said “Australia’s desperation to get a spinner in” is been seen in the way they are trying to get Fawad Ahmed a citizenship. He also adds that Australia’s batting has been a concern.
Speaking about Darren Lehmann replacing Mickey Arthur as the coach, he said, “Such sackings happen all the time. He [Arthur] wasn’t getting the results and any coach who doesn’t do that would be removed.”
