Going by home form is suicidal abroad: Ganguly
NEWDELHI: When India announced their squad for the first Test against South Africa on Friday, there was a glaring omission. Ajinkya Rahane, who has succeeded in overseas conditions over the last few years, was left out and it didn’t take long for experts to question the move.
The murmur continued and after Virat Kohli’s side lost the match by 72 runs, Sourav Ganguly feels Rahane’s performances should have been considered before picking the side for the Cape Town Test.
“The record of Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma in overseas conditions is not very good. Their record is chalk and cheese when it comes to overseas Tests. It is fine to go by current form, but they should not have overlooked the performances of KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane in overseas conditions in the past few years,” Ganguly told India Today on Tuesday.
Ganguly’s comments were in response to Kohli’s post-match press conference where he defended Rohit’s inclusion by saying they looked at his recent performances. Rohit scored a
The record of Dhawan and Rohit in overseas conditions is not very good. Their record is chalk and cheese when it comes to overseas Tests. On duo’s poor show in 1st Test
Steyn’s injury is a blessing in disguise for South Africa. With (Chris) Morris coming in, they will have more strength in batting. On the 2nd Test squad
century and two half-centuries in the three-Test series against Sri Lanka at home, which India won 1-0.
However, when it comes to overseas form, Rohit and Dhawan have struggled to perform. Dhawan has just one century outside the subcontinent while Rohit averages just 25.11 in the 15 Tests he has played outside India.
On the other hand, Rahul has scored three of his four centuries overseas while Rahane has been the standout performer for his team with six hundreds and nine fifties in away Tests.
Asked about the possible changes for the second Test in Centurion, Ganguly said Rahane should make a comeback but doubts the team will drop both Dhawan and Rohit.
South Africa were dominant in bowling in Cape Town, but Dale Steyn’s injury was a big blow.
Ganguly believes Steyn’s absence will not be a problem for Faf du Plessis’ side and allrounder Chris Morris will be an able replacement.
“Steyn’s injury is a blessing in disguise for South Africa. With (Chris) Morris coming in, they will have more strength in batting and that will help them in the series,” Ganguly said.