Mohammad Hafeez, the Pakistani all-rounder, had a career spanning 18 years, during which he witnessed India’s captaincy transition three times. He debuted in 2003 and played against the Sourav Ganguly-led Indian team before MS Dhoni took over in 2007.
Mohammad Hafeez played his final match against India in the 2021 T20 World Cup led by Virat Kohli before retiring in January of the following year. When asked about the better Indian side from an opponent’s viewpoint, Mohammad Hafeez bluntly responded that although he acknowledged Dhoni and Kohli’s contributions to taking India to new heights, his ultimate admiration was reserved for Ganguly.
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During an exclusive interview with Hindustan Times Digital while on the sidelines of the ongoing Legends League Cricket (LLC) in Doha, Mohammad Hafeez shared his thoughts on his cricketing journey and the Indian captaincy over the years.
“The foundation was laid in the Ganguly era, when that mindset was developed that they can beat the world. In Pakistan, to be very honest, that feeling was there in the past.”
“We did have a team who could go to any place in the world, look into the eyes of the opponent and play aggressive cricket. In India, that feeling came only in the Ganguly era. A finer version of it was seen during Dhoni’s captaincy and that continued through the years making India one of the most favorite teams in any series or tournament.”
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Mohammed Hafeez Gives His Take On Hardik Pandya’s Knock In Champions Trophy Finals
When asked about the Champions Trophy final back in 2017, Mohammad Hafeez talked about the game and the importance in held for Pakistan heading into the fixture. According to the former skipper After defeating Sri Lanka and tournament favorites England, there was a strong sense of confidence among us in the dressing room that we could defeat any team in the world.
“Everything combined – the performance of Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Amir – all fell in place for us. And when he dismissed Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma early, we knew we would win because had they performed India would have won. Yes Hardik Pandya performed really well, paatake ache jalaye, but it didn’t work for that day.”
Indian and Pakistan will once again square up in the upcoming Asia Cup. However, there has been a lot of drama surrounding the situation and only time will see how things unfold.
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