I'm good enough to play as a Test batsman - Ganguly

Sourav Ganguly has insisted that the current dip in his form is only a temporary slump, and that he is still good enough to command a place in the team in both forms of the game.

In an interview with The Sportstar, a Chennai-based sports magazine, Ganguly hit back at critics who have been suggesting that he is no longer among the best Test batsmen in the country. "I don't think it's right to say that I won't be able to hold a Test spot as a batsman. As I said, it all has cropped up because I didn't play well against Pakistan in the last series [in 2004-05]. I realise that I have to make runs, I have to make the most of the opportunities that I get.

"But when you have been around for ten years, you go through periods like that. But at the same time, I realise that I have to get big runs as an important member of the team. I agree that I have not played well in the last six to seven months but I have played well over a span of ten years. If I can get things together, I don't see why I can't do well again."

Ganguly has averaged less than 36 in his last 14 Tests, while his ODI form has been even more worrying - no centuries in his last 42 matches, and an average of only 26. Ganguly responded to the criticism thus: "One must also realise that when you play for a span of 10-11 years, it's not going to be the same standards that you have set for yourself. You must also realise that I have not opened consistently in one-day cricket, which used to be my strength, where I have got all my hundreds, it's been at the top of the order. And to get a stronger team, I have sacrificed and batted at No. 4." Ganguly has scored 19 of his 23 centuries as an opener, but his best career stats are at No. 3, where he has scored three hundreds and averages 52.15 in 30 games. Of late, though, Ganguly's form as an ODI opener has dipped as well: in the last 42 games, he has opened the batting 19 times, and averages only 25 at that position, down from his career average of 41 at the top of the order. At No. 4, though, he has clearly struggled, averaging 17 in ten matches.

"Still, in spite of batting at No. 4, before the Pakistan tour started last season, I was the third-highest run-getter in the world in one-day cricket," Ganguly continued. "Rahul was number one with Sangakkara second, and I was third, and the difference was only 20-30 runs. The only opportunity I got to open was in England, and out of the four games, I should have got two hundreds, instead I made two 90s."

Ganguly also cited the lack of runs from the senior batsmen as the primary reason for India's poor results in the ODIs. "I feel our performances in the last one year have dipped because people like me and Sachin [Tendulkar] haven't made big hundreds, which we did for the last one year. When you get two of your top-order batsmen, one with 13,000 runs and the other with 10,000 runs in just a span of nine years, you cannot be out of form for a long time. The only thing I see is that I have not met the standards I have set in terms of scoring hundreds and in terms of the number of match-winning knocks that I have played."

Talking about the thorny captaincy issue, Ganguly insisted that he had no problems playing under Dravid. "Playing for India is more than enough. And I have been captain for five years all around the world. I've got nothing left to prove as a captain. Really did not matter to me, actually it felt nice to play without any thoughts and just concentrate on my game. It doesn't matter who is the captain, it has to be a team and all 16 contributing if India has to do well from now on till whatever time."