"Do you think India-Pakistan tickets will even last 7 hours" - Sourav Ganguly on World Cup tickets sale delay
Former BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has played down the board and the ICC's delay in releasing the tickets for the 2023 World Cup, saying when the tickets do come out, they won't even last for "seven days".
The tickets will be released in a staggered manner from August 25, just 41 days before the first match, with ones for non-India games to come out first followed by India games divided by venues.
In comparison, the tickets sale for the 2011 World Cup, co-hosted by India, started almost a year ago.
"Tickets will finish in seven days, don't worry," Sourav Ganguly said while speaking as the brand ambassador at Casagrand's launch event in Mumbai. "Do you think India-Pakistan tickets will even last seven days or seven hours? No, no. It's fine. Don't worry about all that. It's fine. Tickets will just vanish in India."
However, observers who criticized the delay weren't worried about whether they'll sell on time or not. Instead, it was about the lack of time for the spectators, especially those from overseas, to prepare for travel and get clearances and visas.
Even the Indian audience is likely to suffer with hotel and flight rates likely to go only higher if and when they get the tickets.
Ganguly also defended the BCCI on another issue on which it has faced immense criticism - the lack of press conferences from the chief selectors.
"I think the captain does a lot of press conferences when he's on tour, doesn't he?" Ganguly said. "Chetan Sharma used to do a lot of press conferences and I am sure the new ones will do it now as well. It's not always possible to say in the media why we selected him and why we did not select him. It's not right because these are personal communication within the selection committee and you discuss about players and their strengths and weaknesses and it's not right to bring it out in public."
Chetan Sharma, in fact only did a handful of press conferences in his stint from late 2020 to 2022, mostly after controversies. Even the most debatable selections for both men's and women's teams weren't explained by the board.
"He needs to play a full season of Ranji Trophy" - Sourav Ganguly on Umran Malik
The former skipper stated that Umran Malik, who hasn't been selected for India's Asia Cup squad but has made a few impressive appearances for the national team of late, has "enough talent" but needs to play more, including red-ball cricket, to mature.
"Let him play, let him play for a while," he said. "He has been handled well, [came] quickly into the national team, can't get quicker than this! He has enough talent in him but he needs to mature as a bowler, which will only happen if he keeps playing cricket. He needs to play a full season of Ranji Trophy. Come and bowl in 10 matches, 25 overs/day, he'll be a different bowler."
Ganguly also praised India's current bowling attack, saying it was complete with in-form pacers, with Ravindra Jadeja as the all-rounder alongside the wrist spinners.