Panaji: Virender Sehwag wants India to play arch-rivals Pakistan in the upcoming World Cup as he feels the match is “no less than a war and you should win the war, not lose it”.
“The match is no less than a war and you should win the war, not lose it,” said Sehwag at the Times Network Leadership Summit here on Friday.
There was a clamour for boycott of cricketing ties with Pakistan in the wake of the Pulawama terror attack in February.
The Indian cricket board, in fact, went to the extent of writing to the ICC, urging the world body and its member nations to sever ties with countries which harbour terror. However, the ICC turned down BCCI’s request though Committee of Administrators (CoA) chief Vinod Rai said last month that the Indian board was still seeking a ban on Pakistan.
Talking about the performance of Chennai Super Kings in the ongoing IPL, Sehwag credited captain M S Dhoni for bringing the best out of his team.
Virender Sehwag in support of cricket match between India-Pakistan at WC:
“The leader should know he can make his colleagues put in hundred percent efforts. Chief Executive Officer does not work, the work is done by the subordinates but CEO knows how to get the work done.
“As of today, when IPL is going on, we consider M S Dhoni as the best captain because he can get work done from his players. Or else their bowling attack is one of the worst in today’s time.
“You tell me one bowler from that team who is playing for his country but Dhoni knows how to get the work done and how to rotate them, said the former India opener.
When asked which captains’ style has helped the team perform better – Sehwag named Sourav Ganguly, further explaining that when you have a new team, leadership matters the most in order to get 100 percent from the players.
“A leader is someone who can make others do the work to their fullest. This I feel genuinely is a talent very less people had in the Indian cricket team and Sourav Ganguly was one such great captain who built a good team after the match-fixing controversy. And this team went on to win oversees Test and tournament matches,” he added.
