Victory long overdue: Ganguly
A delighted Sourav Ganguly on Sunday said India's Test triumph outside the subcontinent
was long overdue and hoped the trend would continue in the
upcoming tours of Sri Lanka and South Africa.
"Earlier too, we had come very close to winning Tests
abroad but somehow couldn't make it. This time we were very
confident as we had a very balanced side," Ganguly said,
immediately after India broke its 15-year drought outside the
subcontinent with a comprehensive eight-wicket win against
Zimbabwe in the first of the two-Test series.
For a change it was fielding that came in for praise by the
captain, who said the team could have put up a better batting
performance in the first innings.
"We fielded really well and took some match-winning
catches. But I feel we could have batted a bit better in the
first innings. A lot of batsmen got good starts but were
unable to consolidate," Ganguly said.
India's hero of the day and man-of-the-match Shiv Sunder
Das said he is not worried about having missed a century, and
added that the victory gave him immense satisfaction. He praised
Harbhajan Singh and Samir Dighe for their cameo knocks in the
first innings that created the foundation for India's win.
Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak, who was off the field
on Sunday along with Henry Olonga due to injuries, said he hopes
to play in the second Test as the doctor had given him a clean
chit, but added there is still some doubt over the fitness of
Olonga.
Mail Cricket Editor