Sourav Ganguly has been a massive influence on Indian cricket, Virat Kohli has taken it to another level: David Lloyd

Former England cricketer David Lloyd reckons that Sourav Ganguly injected belief in the Indian team. Ganguly took over at a time when India were marred with match-fixing scandals. In 2001, he took India to victory against a near-invincible Australia and the made them the runners-up in the 2003 World Cup in the African continent.

Lloyd, who’s also a renowned commentator, said that Ganguly turned India into a team, which had the capability of winning in overseas conditions. Lloyd said that Ganguly taught Team India the art of finding a way to solving problems rather than allowing the opponents to dictate terms.

Sourav Ganguly has been a catalyst for Indian cricket, says Lloyd

“I think that when Ganguly got hold of the team, I think he gave the team a real steel. That we will not be dictated to by quick bowlers because we will find some of our own. It was always a suggestion that India away from home don’t like the bouncing ball,” Lloyd said on Sony Ten Pit Stop.

“I think he has been a catalyst for Indian cricket to be a worldwide force. India in India is so difficult but you always felt that (against) India away from home you had a chance,” he stated.

Lloyd also came up with words of praises for Virat Kohli, who has been in charge of Team India across formats since January 2017. Kohli first led India in the 2014 Adelaide Test against Australia when MS Dhoni missed the Test due to injury.

Later in the series, Virat became the full-time captain in the longer format after Dhoni retired from Test cricket. On the 31-year-old, Lloyd stated that he is a fearless character and has helped India scale greater heights. As per Lloyd, the Delhi-born leads by example apart from amassing runs at the highest level.

“I think Ganguly has been a massive influence on Indian cricket and Virat Kohli has taken it to another level. Kohli apart from his greatness as a player is also a great leader and he fears nothing. My own view of Kohli is that he is there to win matches and not to accumulate runs for himself. And he leads by example because he is the best,” Lloyd added.