Former India captain Sourav Ganguly, who is tipped to return as Kolkata Knight Riders’ skipper, said rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) players are on the radar of the Shah Rukh Khan-owned outfit for the third season of Indian Premier League next year.
Talking to reporters, Ganguly said, “We will try and get ICL players but there are other teams who will also be pitching for them.” Asked about the chances of ICL players from Bengal, including former captain Deep Dasgupta, Ganguly said, “Yes, we have the Bengal ICL players in mind as well. We are looking for them as I said we are trying to make a better team and everybody will be seen.”
The third edition of the IPl will be held from March 12-April 25 next year. Even after his ouster from the Knight Riders’ think-tank, former coach John Buchanan had continued his verbal attack against Ganguly, but the left-hander refused to pay any importance to the remarks.
“It’s his opinion. For us at KKR, Buchanan is a story of the past. We have not played well last year and we need to get everything right. We need to play good cricket and that’s important, rest does not matter. It’s a thing of the past,” he said.
Ganguly donned the mentor’s role during the camp and gave away ball-by-ball tips to all the players, but the left-hander refused to take any additional mileage from it, saying, “I just helped them out.”
“Obviously, Knight Riders will have a coach, I don’t know who it is, but I am sure we will get to know shortly. We had a camp as physio Andrew Leipus was here, we needed to assess the players fitness and being one of the senior players, I was just helping them out,” he said.
“It is just a beginning. These sorts of camps will keep on happening whenever players are free. So far, it has been a good camp,” Ganguly added.
Asked about the possible date for the next camp, Ganguly said, “Let’s see when these guys are free from Ranji Trophy. Whenever they have seven days off, we will try and bring them for three-four days.”
During the camp, the Knight Riders apparently ‘tested’ players from other IPL teams like Manoj Tiwary (Delhi Daredevils) and Ranadeb Bose (Kings XI Punjab) and the move had raised a few eyebrows but Ganguly said it was not a controversy at all.
“They had come to show their injury. We are aware that they are with other franchises and we cannot have them with us. It happens everywhere, when we go outside also we are treated by other physios,” he said.
