ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Sourav Ganguly makes a surprising pick for the number 4 slot

What's the story?

Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly, who was known to back unexpected players during his time at the helm has come out with a very surprising name as a solution to India's No. 4 conundrum in the ODIs.

He has suggested that India should play test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara at the number four slot during the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.

In case you didn’t know

The prestigious tournament is set to commence from May 30, 2019, where hosts England will take on South Africa in the opener. As per the required norms, all participating nations must submit its 15-member squad by April 23, 2019, to the International Cricket Council.

The heart of the matter

Indian management has tried a lot of options like Ambati Rayudu, KL Rahul, Vijay Shankar and Rishabh Pant for the number 4 slot in the batting line up. However, none of them was able to cement his spot in the team.

In an interview given to IndiaTV, Ganguly came up with a surprising solution and said

"See, I am going to say something that might not sound believable to many viewers and a lot of people might laugh at my suggestion. But for me, Cheteshwar Pujara should be India's No.4 in ODIs. His fielding might be a bit weak but he is a very good batsman. I know people will be shocked by my claim but if you want a quality batsman who is better than the options India has tried off late, I think Pujara is the best choice.”

Dada added, “I believe Pujara has the capability to perform the role that Rahul Dravid used to for India in ODIs earlier. But this would have been my decision and I know a lot of people won't agree with me on this. Sometimes, you need solidity in one-day cricket and Pujara provides you with that in ample measure. Especially, when your top 3 batsmen are so capable and are scoring a mountain of runs.”

What's next?

The 2019 edition of the IPL kicks off from the 23rd march in Chennai where quite a lot of India hopefuls would be auditioning for the number four slot.

However, Pujara hasn’t been picked by any franchise and it is highly unlikely that the selectors would take the bold call of taking him to England for the World Cup.