Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly has backed the country’s spin attack, particularly Varun Chakravarthy, to play a pivotal role in India’s title defence at the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026. The legendary captain, who is currently coaching Pretoria Capitals in the SA20, expressed confidence that India’s strong spin bowling lineup makes them favourites for the tournament, which begins on February 7 in India and Sri Lanka.

“If Chakravarthy is fit, it’s good for India”

Hosts India have selected a formidable spin attack comprising Varun Chakravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Washington Sundar for the ICC marquee event. Ganguly believes this quartet will be crucial to India’s chances of defending their title on home soil.

“Yeah, nothing (home World Cup) gets bigger than that, and India is always my favourite team. They have a strong spin attack and if Chakravarthy is fit then it’s good for India,” Ganguly, who coaches Pretoria Capitals in the SA20, said in an interaction with a select media gathering.

The emphasis on Chakravarthy reflects the mystery spinner’s growing importance in India’s T20 setup. His ability to bowl in different phases of the innings and deceive batsmen with variations makes him a valuable asset, especially on subcontinental pitches that traditionally favor spin bowling.

Learning on the job as first-time head coach

The 53-year-old, who has accepted the head coach role for the first time in his career, said he is looking to learn on the job and enjoying the new challenge.

“First time ever in my life, head coach. But I am enjoying it. Actually, I am very close to (Delhi Capitals co-owner) Parth (Jindal), so he asked me to do this, so I did it.”

“I am also learning. I may have played any amount of matches, captained any amount of matches, but this is different. I am coaching and I am doing this to learn and understand,” said Ganguly, who also works as the Director of Cricket at Delhi Capitals in the IPL.

Pretoria Capitals climbing the table

The Pretoria Capitals defeated Paarl Royals at Boland Park on Saturday by 21 runs to leap to third position on the table. It was their second win on the trot, and Ganguly was understandably delighted with the team’s momentum heading into the business end of the tournament.

“When you play any big tournament, whether it’s a World Cup, IPL or SA20, the back-end gets very tight and competitive and that’s where you need to be at your best. It’s a very important point.”

“You know these sort of wins when you defend one side, it actually gives you a lot of confidence. Hopefully we will continue to do that. But in sport, every day is a new day. So we’ll pick ourselves up and start fresh the day after tomorrow,” he detailed.

Fond memories of South Africa

Ganguly was also chuffed to start his coaching career in South Africa, a country where he has fond memories as a player, including leading India to the 2003 World Cup final.

“This has been a great place for us. I have come so many times here, the World Cup finals, in 2003. We lost, but we were exceptional in the tournament. South Africa is a place for cricket. You can see how good the tournament is.”

“The stands are full, even on a weekday, people come and watch. Whether it’s Cape Town, whether it’s Pretoria, whether it’s Paarl because it’s a cricketing country, it’s been a great tournament,” he said.