Hafeez compares the captaincies of MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, and Sourav Ganguly
Posted on March 18, 2023 by cbtfhome

in an interview with Hindustan times digital on the sidelines of the ongoing legends League in Doha, he talked about his most memorable moment of India versus Pakistan match.  As he is from the opposition team, he can make a better judgement of who was on the Indian side, as his answer was quite blunt. He hailed Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli for taking Team India to new heights, but he reserved his praise for Saurav Ganguly.
When it was asked of him what his most memorable moment of the India versus Pakistan matches was, he said, "Every India versus Pakistan match is a memorable one." Whether you lose or win, the experience of being part of the match is totally different. You are appreciated when you win the match, and on losing, the fans passionately express their anger. But the one that I remember was that Bengaluru innings, which we won in the T20I match in 2012. There was pin-drop silence. I remember it vividly, and I want to feel it again. I loved it the most when there was an India versus Pakistan game in India and we ended up performing well; the packed stadium became silent.
After this question, the interviewer asked him about how he sees India through three different eras, that is, Ganguly, Kohli, and Dhoni, and which was the best or the most competitive.
In answer to this question, he said that "the foundation was laid in the Ganguly era; that is when that mindset was developed that they could beat the world." In Pakistan, to be very honest, that feel was there in the past.  We did have a team who could go to any place in the world, look into the eyes of the opponent and play aggressive cricket.  In India, that feeling came only in the Ganguly era. A finer version of it was seen during Dhoni's captaincy, and that continued through the years, making India one of the most favorite teams in any series or tournament.