Kolkata, July 30: Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly today said his squad, brimming with the confidence of young players, was on the upswing and had its eyes set on the 2007 World Cup. "Indian cricket is on the upswing. We have a number of new players. We will try and improve the team further so that we lift the 2007 World Cup," Ganguly said at a civic reception accorded to him by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation here.
The Indian captain said when the team played well, the entire country was happy, but a poor performance left them disappointed.
"Since cricket is such a popular game and so many people look up to us, we must play well, at least, to make them happy," Ganguly said. Reminiscing his young days when he had accompanied his father to the Eden Gardens for the first time to see a game of cricket, Ganguly said he was in awe of cricketers who had to deliver in front of over a lakh people.
"I was amazed at what was happening all around me. That was when I first understood how popular the game was among the masses. Later when I became captain of the Indian team, I knew how proud my city Kolkata must be," a beaming Ganguly said.
Describing the civic reception as a 'rare honour' that put him in the league of Nobel laureates Rabindranath Tagore and Amartya Sen earlier felicitated at the historic Town Hall, Ganguly said it was a happy occasion to be felicitated by his 'beloved city'.
City mayor Subrato Mukherjee presented Ganguly with a silver plaque, a replica of the city's skyline, a platinum-diamond ring and a land deed. Ganguly's wife Dona was given a gold jewellery set and daughter Sana a gold chain. Bureau Report