Sehwag has it in him to lead India : Ganguly

New Delhi | Wednesday, Oct 7 2009 IST :

Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly has stated that swashbuckling opener Virender Sehwag has the potential to be a successful captain at the international level. ''Virender Sehwag has it in him to lead India. Sehwag still has at least 5-6 years of cricket in him and even if any chance of captaining the side comes his way in the last two years of his career he should not pass it on,'' Sourav said.

Sehwag had decided to step down from the post of vice-captain, saying that he wanted someone younger to be picked and groomed to lead India in the future. But the decision did not find any favours with Ganguly who urged the Delhi batsman to be more proactive in accepting leadership roles.

''I don't think Veeru should think like this. Sehwag has enjoyed immense success in all three formats of the game and it is natural for a player of his stature to be the Vice Captain and the first choice to be the captain if and when an opportunity comes his way,'' the former skipper averred. Speaking on India's poor run in the recently concluded Champions Trophy, Ganguly said,''you cannot win them all, you loose some you win some. The boys are in tremendous form and they should be given the support and motivation to turn them into world beaters.'' ''It is necessary for a team to keep its nerves in crunch matches. Team India has matured into a fighting unit but to be able to make the difference we need a match winner like Shane Watson who can impact the game with his all-round abilities,'' he told 'Star News'.

Admitting that injuries did play a part in scupperring India's chances in South Africa Ganguly said,''the absence of the three match winners - Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer Khan did affect the Indian team's prospects at the Champions Trophy; however their return will strengthen the team in upcoming series.'' The 37-year-old left-hander is all set to lead the Kolkata Knight Riders in the third season of the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) and sounded positive about the team's chances despite poor performances during the first two editions.

He said that though the team had a bad last season, it was looking to turn the tide just as the Deccan Chargers did.

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