Ahmedabad, Oct 09: Skipper Sourav Ganguly today put his deputy on the elite pedestal calling him one of the game`s greats in the modern era after Rahul Dravid put India in command with a masterly 222. "Even before this knock I have always believed that Rahul is one of the greats. He is a fine player and to have scored 15 centuries from 70 tests is no mean feat," Ganguly said after India cornered New Zealand by first amassing 500 for five declared and then reducing the visitors to 41 for three.
"Apart from that he has so many thousands of runs and his records speak for themselves and it was a pleasure to bat with him," said Ganguly who remained unbeaten on 100.
On fast bowler Zaheer Khan`s fine opening spell (3 for 16) that rattled the visitors, the skipper said the Baroda speedster has improved a lot in the last 18 months.
"He is a very changed bowler in the last year and half. He has become much fitter and stronger after training under Adrian le Roux and now under Greg King. He has been an outstanding bowler for some time now."
"I am now looking forward to Javagal Srinath`s decision on the forthcoming tour to Australia as experience counts a lot," he said.
Ganguly said it is always a plus to start the season with a hundred. "It is always good to score runs especially and to get a hundred at the start of the season in very satisfying."

Bureau Report