November 09 Saturday 2002
Agarkar to bat at number three: Ganguly

NAGPUR: Impressed with all-rounder Ajit Agarkar's batting performance in first match at Jamshedpur, Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly on Friday said the Mumbai player will once again be sent to bat at number three position in second One-day International against West Indies here on Saturday. 

"I had this (sending Agarkar one drop) on my mind for some time and decided to try it out in the last match," Ganguly said in his pre-match comments. 

"Full credit should go to Agarkar for the way he played during that innings. All his shots were cricketing shots and he phased his innings pretty well," he said about Agarkar's career-best innings of 95 at Jamshedpur. 

"He bowled a full toss off last ball of the innings, which was propmtly disposed to the boundary by Ramnaresh Sarwan with West Indians still needing three runs. "But I don't think you can hold anything against Ajit alone as we did not bowl well at all as team," Ganguly said. Asked about newly-laid pitch at Vidarbha Cricket Association ground, Ganguly said it was a good wicket and ideal for an one-day match. On whether his poor batting form was a cause of concern for the team, the left-hander said, "I need to score runs and I hope I will get a big score over here".