Sourav Ganguly Throws Weight Behind IPL’s Impact Player Rule, Backs Aquib Nabi To Hog Limelight This Season

All-rounders can't hide their disdain for it but former India captain Sourav Ganguly on Tuesday said the IPL's controversial Impact Player rule is here to stay.

A day after India's T20 vice-captain and Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel said he does not like the rule as it hampers the growth of all-rounders like him, Ganguly said despite the many opinions the rule is unlikely to be scrapped.

"Impact player rule I think it's going to stay, and when I was the president of BCCI it had already come in. So, this is here to stay, someone will like it someone will not," Ganguly said here on the sidelines of an event where he was named brand ambassador of energy and infrastructure conglomerate, Jakson Group.

The Impact Player rule allows teams to substitute anyone in the playing XI with one of the five listed substitutes at any point of the match.

Despite the T20 boom, Ganguly rated Test cricket as the "strongest format of the game" and said the shortest format is the least challenging.

Ganguly vouched for Test cricket to survive for long, given its importance in Test playing nations like India, England, Australia and South Africa.

"I think Test cricket is the real format because one has to bowl 20-25 overs in one day, bowling four overs in a T20 match is a lot easy. T20 cricket is least challenging in terms of quality. But T20 cricket is the format which brings in people, it's just for three hours in the evening full of sixes and fours," Ganguly said.

"But in countries like India, England, Australia and South Africa Test cricket will always be special and when you see young players want to play Test cricket, it proves Test cricket is the strongest format of the game." Coming back to the IPL where Rajasthan Royals are set to be bought for USD 1.63 billion by a consortium led by US-based entrepreneur Kal Somani, Ganguly said the numbers are mind-boggling.

Somani is the founder of IntraEdge, Academian, and Truyo.AI. He is backed by American businessman Rob Walton of the Walmart family, and the Hamp family, who own majority stakes in National Football League (NFL) side Detroit Lions.

Sheila Ford Hamp also has roots in the Ford family, who are co-owners of the Ford Motor Company.

"IPL will only go to greater heights. This is phenomenal and it also goes to show the game is expanding as the game is going to America, onto that part of the world is fantastic," Ganguly said.

"It's mind-blowing numbers but there is lot's more in store for Indian cricket and I am looking forward to it." The former batsman said there are a lot of players to look out for in this IPL but Jammu and Kashmir pacer Auqib Nabi, who has been bought by Delhi Capitals for Rs 8.4 crore, will be the centre of attraction after his exploits in the Ranji Trophy.

"There are lot of players, look at someone like (Vaibhav) Suryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ayush Mhatre, Suryakumar (Yadav).

"Aquib Nabi, I am looking forward to see Aquib Nabi. They are all young, Washington Sundar is young, Tilak Verma is young. They are all young and they are peaking and that's what IPL stands for," Ganguly said.

Ganguly, who guided Pretoria Capitals to the runners-up finish at this year's SA20 League in South Africa, reiterated that he is open to coaching opportunities in future.

"The most important thing for me is cricket. When I used to play cricket, I used to bat, bowl and also captained the national team.

"But whatever I am doing now is in different phases. I just want to get involved with cricket, I also coached Pretoria Capitals in the South Africa League where we reached the final and I have an interest in that also (coaching)," he said.

"I have been BCCI and CAB (Cricket Association of Bengal) president as well and became CAB president again. I have achieved everything in life and whatever opportunities I will get I will explore them."