Kolkata: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly on Monday said India’s maiden Test series win in Australia is a “terrific” achievement and credited the way the team batted for the success. “It’s a terrific win. They played excellent cricket throughout and the batting clicked. They scored 400-600 runs and that was the key,” Ganguly told reporters at the Eden Gardens here.
The Virat Kohli-led team entered the history books by winning the first-ever Test series Down Under. After the visiting team won the Adelaide and Melbourne Tests, the fourth and final Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) ended in a draw as no play was possible on the last day due to continuous downpour. India clinched the series 2-1.
Asked to compare Kohli’s side with teams of the past including his feted team which drew 1-1 in Australia, India’s best result prior to this, Ganguly said: “I don’t compare ever. So I can’t answer that question.”
Ganguly also heaped praise on young wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant who had a groundbreaking series scoring 350 runs in seven innings — the second highest — which included an unbeaten 159, and also broke the record for the most catches by an Indian stumper in a Test series with 20 catches in the four Tests. “He will be a superb player for india in the future. He has been so good in the series and in future also he will shine,” Ganguly said.
On highest run-getter Cheteshwar Pujara and joint-most wicket taker Jasprit Bumrah, Ganguly said they were the main weapons for Kohli. “Bumrah and Pujara were simply brilliant. They played big roles behind the win,” Ganguly added. Pujara amassed 521 runs at 74.42 scoring three hundreds while Bumrah bagged 21 wickets alongwith Australian spinner Nathan Lyon to finish top of the charts.