Victory long overdue: Ganguly

A delighted Sourav Ganguly on Sunday said India's Test triumph outside the subcontinent was long overdue and hoped the trend would continue in the upcoming tours of Sri Lanka and South Africa.

"Earlier too, we had come very close to winning Tests abroad but somehow couldn't make it. This time we were very confident as we had a very balanced side," Ganguly said, immediately after India broke its 15-year drought outside the subcontinent with a comprehensive eight-wicket win against Zimbabwe in the first of the two-Test series.

For a change it was fielding that came in for praise by the captain, who said the team could have put up a better batting performance in the first innings.

"We fielded really well and took some match-winning catches. But I feel we could have batted a bit better in the first innings. A lot of batsmen got good starts but were unable to consolidate," Ganguly said.

India's hero of the day and man-of-the-match Shiv Sunder Das said he is not worried about having missed a century, and added that the victory gave him immense satisfaction. He praised Harbhajan Singh and Samir Dighe for their cameo knocks in the first innings that created the foundation for India's win.

Zimbabwe captain Heath Streak, who was off the field on Sunday along with Henry Olonga due to injuries, said he hopes to play in the second Test as the doctor had given him a clean chit, but added there is still some doubt over the fitness of Olonga.

Mail Cricket Editor