Former India better Parthiv Patel chose the former president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and captain Sourav Ganguly as his captain over Mahendra Singh Dhoni and said that there will always be a soft corner for his first skipper.
Parthiv made his debut for India at the age of 17 in 2002. Parthiv played 15 Test matches and 10 ODIs under Ganguly's captaincy between 2002 and 2004. Ganguly was known for backing his players.
"Today I would still choose Sourav Ganguly as my captain for sure. We've had a lot of successful captains Dhoni, Virat Kohli, everyone. But I would still choose Sourav. I think he had time for everyone though. Everyone else has been great captains as well. But I would still choose him," Parthiv Patel said during the 6th Advancement In Endourology Conference At the Forum Convention Centre.
Parthiv won the IPL with CSK in 2010 before moving on to the Mumbai Indians in 2015 and 2017, where he won two more titles.
"Of course, Dhoni's been great. There is no doubt about it. But when your first captain, you always have a soft corner for him. And that's exactly what I have. I've played for three years for Chennai Super Kings. I can say it, but I made my Test debut or a one-day debut before Dhoni came in.
"My performance went down. That's why Dhoni got picked. So I think it is a credit to him. I always said it, but there is only one opportunity you get because there are so many players around," he added.
Talking about the difference between Delhi batters Gautam Gambir and Virat Kohli, Parthiv said both players are polite but the former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain's style is slightly more aggressive.
"On the ground and off the ground. Virat is very polite. Gautam is also very polite. I mean, when you are playing cricket, when you want to win games for your country, there's obviously some kind of aggression that comes in. But we all love Virat Kohli. The way he celebrates and stuff. He inspires a lot of them. I've played a lot of cricket with Gautam but I would say Virat's rather slightly more aggressive," Parthiv said.
