Sourav Ganguly revealed five candidates for the ICC World Cup 2023 semi-final spots on the occasion of his 51st birthday on Saturday, July 8. The former captain also hoped for the Pakistan team to reach the semi-final round and play India at Kolkata's Eden Gardens.
Pakistan are set to play in India for the first time since 2016 and will clash against their neighbours in an anticipated fixture at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium on July 15. They are also scheduled to play their remaining group-stage fixtures at Hyderabad, Chennai, Bengaluru, and Kolkata.
In ICC ODI team standings, Pakistan are currently ranked second, one point above India, and have three players in the top five batters' rankings, including captain Babar Azam at the top. When asked about his semi-final candidates prediction, Ganguly named hosts India, current champion England, top-ranked ODI team Australia, and last edition's runner-up New Zealand. He then also highlighted the much-improved Pakistan team and said that he wants them to reach the semi-finals.
"It’s very hard to say [teams that could make the semi-final]," Ganguly said in an interview on RevSportz. "Australia, England, India. You can never underestimate New Zealand in these big matches. I will pick five, and include Pakistan also. Pakistan better qualify so that we will have the India-Pakistan semi-final at the Eden Gardens."
The former BCCI president also played down's India's worrisome record in ICC knockout stages. He said that the current team has quality options to go all the way this time.
"We don’t perform well sometimes, in crucial phases. I don’t feel it is mental pressure, but all about execution. They are mentally strong people. Hopefully, they will cross the line soon. At least we qualified for the finals of the WTC, which is also an achievement. And yes, we have a chance. We have got good players, plenty of them. Hopefully, we will do it this time," Ganguly added.
