Rohit Sharma was not keen on taking up captaincy of the Indian cricket team, but Sourav Ganguly convinced him to do it, the former BCCI president has revealed. Ganguly said in an interview with Kolkata TV that Sharma was “playing a lot of cricket” and had “a lot on his plate” when he was offered the captaincy. However, Ganguly told Sharma that he had to say yes or he would announce his name as captain.

“Rohit didn’t want the captaincy because there was a lot of pressure on playing all formats – it had gone to a stage where I told him you have to say yes or I will announce your name. I am happy he has taken it now he is leading from the front and you guys can check the results,” Sourav Ganguly said.

Sharma has led India to great success since taking over as captain in 2022. The team has won all eight matches it has played in the ongoing ODI World Cup 2023, and has already qualified for the semi-finals.

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Ganguly also said that Rahul Dravid was not keen on taking up the coaching role of the Indian senior team as he would have had to invest a lot of time away from home. However, the legendary batter agreed, keeping in mind the best interests of Indian cricket.

“It’s a lot of time on road. [He has a] young family, two young boys, plus he has played all his life. So, it’s not easy coaching, being on the road all the time. But he agreed, thinking about Indian cricket and I hope he will continue in the future because a coach needs to be given time. This is not magic that he will change his team in three, four, or five months. He needs to be given minimum time,” Sourav Ganguly said.

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Ganguly’s comments about Sharma and Dravid are interesting, as it shows the pressure that is on players and coaches to succeed at the highest level. Sharma was reluctant to take on the captaincy because of the workload involved, while Dravid was hesitant to take on the coaching role because of the time away from his family.

However, both men agreed to take on the roles for the best interests of Indian cricket. It is also worth noting that Ganguly’s comments come at a time when India is performing well in the ODI World Cup. The team is unbeaten in the tournament, and has looked very impressive. It will be interesting to see if India can go all the way and win the World Cup under Sharma’s captaincy.