Ahead of the high-voltage T20 World Cup 2021 final between New Zealand and Australia in Dubai on Sunday (November 14), the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Sourav Ganguly has backed Kane Williamson-led Kiwis to win their second International Cricket Council (ICC) title this year. Ganguly feels the Kiwi team has more guts and character than we see them show.
"I feel it is New Zealand's time in world sport. Australia are a great nation, but they have had a tough time for a while, though they have been a great cricketing country. New Zealand has a lot more guts and character than we see on TV,” Ganguly said while speaking at the 40th Sharjah International Book Fair.
“They won the World Test Championship (WTC) a few months ago. It's a small country but it's got a lot of steel. I have the feeling that it is indeed New Zealand's time," the BCCI president added.
Moreover, the former Indian captain backed the Indian cricket team to make a comeback after they were knocked out in the Super 12 stage of T20 World Cup 2021 due to horrendous loss against the arch-rivals Pakistan followed by New Zealand.
"Expectations were undoubtedly very high, but I was happy to see that a majority of the people had the heart to accept the result. They were upset, but they did not overreact. At the end of the day - Bumrah, Shami, Rohit, and Kohli are all human beings. It was just a matter of two bad games. That's 40 overs of bad cricket. They will bounce back, and within a year or so, we will see the same boys lifting trophies," the 49-year-old hoped.
New Zealand will fly to India for a three-match T20I series and two-match Test series after tonight's final against Australia. The opening T20I of the series will be played in Jaipur on November 17.
