PAARL: Donning multiple hats is not new to former India captain Sourav Ganguly. He has captained the national team, IPL franchises, mentored teams and has been Director of Cricket for JSW Sports. However, for the first time in his career, Ganguly is now head coach of a team — Pretoria Capitals in SA20.
And it has been a rollercoaster of a start for him and the Capitals in the ongoing season. After seven matches, Capitals have three wins, including the close finish against the Paarl Royals at Boland Park on Saturday. Speaking on the sidelines of the match in a select media interaction, Ganguly said he is still learning as a coach. “I am also learning. I may have played any number of matches, captained any number of matches, but this is different. I am coaching, and I am doing this to learn and understand,” he said.
Capitals got off to a rough start, losing their first two games, and despite the win against MI Cape Town, they once again went down to the Sunrisers Eastern Cape. Just when it seemed like they were down and out, the Capitals eked out a win against Durban’s Super Giants before beating Paarl Royals. Ganguly hoped that consecutive wins would give them the momentum to get back on the play-off race.
“When you play any big tournament, whether it's a World Cup, IPL or SA20, the back-end gets very tight and competitive, and that's where you need to be at your best. If you look at our last four games (one no result excluded) we have won three. The beginning of this year, when I came, was a bit rough. We fancied ourselves in Pretoria,” he said, before adding, “It's a very important point. These sorts of wins, when you defend one side, actually give you a lot of confidence. Hopefully it will do that.”
Recalling the fond memories of the 2003 World Cup, where he led India to the final before losing to Australia, Ganguly said, “This has been a great place for us. I have come so many times, World Cup Finals, 2003. We lost, but we are exceptional in the tournament. It's a place for cricket. You can see how good the tournament is. Stands are full, even on a weekday; people come and watch. Everywhere, whether it's Cape Town, whether it's Pretoria, whether it's Paarl, it's a cricketing country, it's been a great tournament.”
