News

Doors not closed on Ganguly: Dravid

Rahul Dravid has once again reiterated that the doors had not been closed on Sourav Ganguly's return to the team

Cricinfo staff
30-Mar-2006


'We are not writing off anyone - irrespective of whether it is a Ganguly or a Kumble' - Dravid © Getty Images
Rahul Dravid has once again reiterated that performance alone will be the criterion for selection and that the doors had not been closed on Sourav Ganguly's return to the team.
Asked in an interview with CNN-IBN, an Indian news channel, about the chances of a comeback for Ganguly (in both forms of the game) and Anil Kumble (in the one-dayers), Dravid said: "We are not writing off anyone - irrespective of whether it is a Ganguly or a Kumble ... Anyone could be in the team if you are playing domestic cricket and if you are doing well [and] as long as there is a place for you in the team. If the people in the team are doing really well then it becomes very difficult, irrespective of who you are."
When asked whether his relations with Ganguly had deteriorated in recent times, Dravid said, "on a personal level, they have not. We did meet and we do meet. I just think that sometimes things get blown a bit out of proportion as well. In India, we get obsessed with the individuals; we love our cricketers - whether it is a Dravid, Ganguly or Kumble. We form a personal bonding, almost a personal relationship with our players even if we do not know them. And there is a huge amount of affection and love with our players. And so, if anything goes wrong with them, we sometimes don't take it too well."
Dravid stressed that while World Cup is certainly "very important" and "critical event", he is not obsessed with it. "You know, winning the World Cup will be great, it will be fantastic, but winning the World Cup is never the be-all and end-all of anything.
"It is about creating a good team, it is about creating a good system, a team that can go forward and a team that can get better even after the World Cup, whether it be a series in Australia, whether it is a series in England. It is about building a good team, it is a constant process, it is a constant journey and it is something that you keep striving to do."