Sourav Ganguly rubbishes the talks around IPL impacting India's ICC trophy campaign

Australia thrashed India by a huge margin of 209 runs in the ICC WTC Final played earlier this month.

Former Indian Captain Sourav Ganguly came forward in defense of the Indian Premier League. The tournament faced severe criticism from legendary names and Indian fans after Team India’s crushing defeat in the World Test Championship Final against Australia at The Oval. Coach Rahul Dravid and captain Rohit Sharma also raised concerns over the team's preparation for the big ICC WTC Final earlier this month. It was said that most of the player’s involvement in the Indian Premier League had impacted the team’s performance in the big game against Australia. This was India’s second consecutive World Test Championship Final defeat. Previously India lost the final against New Zealand in 2021. 

Sourav Ganguly bats for the IPL

Talking on IPL’s impact on India’s ICC Event campaigns, the Former BCCI president said, “I don’t agree with that theory. Ajinkya Rahane also played in the IPL and he played very well during the IPL and World Test Championship Final. So I don’t believe in this theory. Some of the Australian boys (Cameron Green, David Warner), played well in the World Test Championship”. Ganguly also said that there was enough time for the players to acclimatize to test cricket. He said, “After IPL finished, there was enough time to acclimatise to Test Cricket”. He further added that players should have the ability to adjust their batting technique and temperament. 

India suffered a crushing defeat by a huge margin of 209 runs against Australia. Most of the Indian players failed to put up a challenging show against the Australian pace attack. The Top 4 failed to score a fifty in both innings, while Ajinkya Rahane ended the game as the top-scorer for India as he smashed 89 runs in the first innings of the final. Australia batters had a magnificent run against the Indian pace attack as Travis Head, Steve Smith smashed centuries in the first innings. Team Management also faced huge criticism for not playing off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in the game.