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We have to win every game, says Ganguly

Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI: Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Sourav Ganguly is focused on the crucial clash with Delhi Daredevils at the Ferozeshah Kotla on Thursday.

“We have to win every game,” he agrees and then adds, “but then we have not been at our full strength all the time. We are in a tight corner because we have played well only in patches but we have also lost players at various times. It has effected our combination and overall approach. I wish we had done better.”

Ganguly pointed out, “We lost Chris Gayle due to injury; Brendon McCullum and Ricky Ponting were available for only a couple of initial games.

“We didn’t have (Brad) Hodge and then Shoaib (Akhtar) for as many matches as we would have liked. It has been tough on this count but I am happy to say that we found some players who grabbed the opportunities.”

Good experience

Talking of opportunities, Ganguly praised the likes of Wriddhiman Saha, Debabrata Das and Ashoke Dinda.

“It has been a very good experience for them. Performance in the IPL may not be the best barometer to judge a youngster’s potential but it is a stage nevertheless for everyone to be noticed.

“The IPL has allowed these youngsters to interact with some of the greats of the game and learn. It is also important that some of them have enjoyed the experience of playing in front of such huge crowd. For a youngster, it is an important lesson to get used to the atmosphere of a packed house and also to tackle the pressures that come from it. But they should remember that performances in the longer format will be important for them.”

Ganguly did not believe that the Twenty20 format was only for the young.

‘Entertaining’

“It is entertaining and I am sure entertainment has nothing to do with age. It has to do with performance and it is a game where performance counts and nothing else. It is a game where even the traditionalists can excel and they have in this IPL.”

On the personal front, Ganguly said, “I have enjoyed this experience. It has been very different and wonderful from the cricket that I played in the past.”

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