Raina's credentials as T20 batsman unquestionable Ganguly.MIRPUR: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly feels that Suresh Raina's ability as a T20 batsman is "unquestionable" and his success in the ongoing World T20 will give him confidence to get ready for "bigger battles" ahead. Raina's sequence of scores, including the two warm-up games, are 41, 54, 35 not out and 1 not out and he had credited Ganguly for giving him tips which proved to be invaluable in his recent success.
"I never had any doubts about Suresh's talent and ability. He has always been a class act in shortest format. He is a dangerous T20 batsman and a big threat for any opposition team. I am certainly hopeful that his current form in ICC World T20 will translate into something bigger and better in the coming days," Ganguly said. "There will be tougher battles ahead (England tour in July-September, Australia tour and World Cup) and I would ideally want to him get success in those battles," he said.
Asked about the kind of technical inputs he has given to Raina, Ganguly said, "Yes, I have had interactions with Suresh but what I told him is a very personal thing between two individuals and not for media consumption. He is a colleague and it is my duty to help him if he ever needs any. I am always there to help anyone who needs my advice and I don't believe in making a hue and cry about it. Raina's sequence of scores, including the two warm-up games, are 41, 54, 35 not out and 1 not out and he had credited Ganguly for giving him tips which proved to be invaluable in his recent success.
"I never had any doubts about Suresh's talent and ability. He has always been a class act in shortest format. He is a dangerous T20 batsman and a big threat for any opposition team. I am certainly hopeful that his current form in ICC World T20 will translate into something bigger and better in the coming days," Ganguly told.There will be tougher battles ahead (England tour in July-September, Australia tour and World Cup) and I would ideally want to him get success in those battles," he said.
Asked about the kind of technical inputs he has given to Raina, Ganguly said, "Yes, I have had interactions with Suresh but what I told him is a very personal thing between two individuals and not for media consumption. He is a colleague and it is my duty to help him if he ever needs any. I am always there to help anyone who needs my advice and I don't believe in making a hue and cry about it.
For someone, who had been a mentor to Yuvraj Singh during the early part of his career, Ganguly said people should not read too much into the left-handed batsman's indifferent form at the moment.
"It's only two matches that Yuvraj has not got runs. We should not make a big fuss about it. He is a human being and can go through a tough phase. He has the talent to overcome this. Show me one sportsman who has played at the top level for 14, 15 or 16 years and never had a slump in form? This is bound to happen as that's how the nature of sport is," said Ganguly.
Ganguly said the key was having self belief and willingness to work hard.
"Self belief is always the key and also Yuvi will need to work even harder now. His time will certainly come and he will have to ready to grab his chance then," said Ganguly who has made several comebacks during his illustrious international career.Many people have been talking about how India's pace spearhead Mohammed Shami requires rest as he has played 18 ODIs, one List A, four T20s and six Test matches since October 23 last year. But Ganguly has a different view.Many argue that he is one of the most dangerous batsmen in the shorter formats of the game but only if the team is playing in subcontinental conditions. A very well known weakness, is his shortcoming against the short ball.
This was very clearly exposed during India’s tour of England in 2011 just after his great showing in the World Cup. When the England bowlers saw him struggle against anything near the ribs, the news did not take long to move to other teams. Whenever Raina came out to bat, every fast bowler’s eyes lighted up, and even the medium pacers went for his one great weak spot as they had no qualms in pitching everything short.Against such deliveries Raina is seen hopping as he tries to steer, hook and pull the ball in vain as he is unable to keep his feet on the crease while attempting the shots.
This is something that he is working on very hard, taking bouncers and relentless short pitched bowling in the nets. One must say, that he has improved a lot since the England series as he managed to hook and pull a few deliveries over the boundary line against South Africa in the ODI series that concluded late last year. However, the short ball again, was his downfall as he was unable to play the delivery consistently.
