NEW DELHI, Jan 1: Amid a raging debate whether India or South Africa are possible successors to Australia, Saurav Ganguly on Thursday said it would be “a bit too early” to rank Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men as world’s number one team as it still needs to prove itself overseas.

The former captain said India had a very good team but the “real test” would come when they play well abroad where the conditions are different.

Asked specifically whether India could be the number one team after Australia’s decline, Ganguly said: “To say that India would be number one, I think it’s a bit too early. Look at the ICC points rankings, Australia, although they have not played good cricket for the last 3-4 months, they are still a few points away from the rest.

“India has a very good team but I believe this team’s real test would be overseas, when India go to New Zealand and when they start traveling abroad. If you look at the last year, India has played a lot of cricket at home,” Ganguly said.

Ganguly, who retired from international cricket after the series against Australia in November, said it would be difficult for India to replace great players like Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid when they decide to retire.

“It will take a lot of time to replace the Tendulkars, Dravids, Kumbles and Laxmans. It has taken a period of time for what they have achieved,” added Ganguly who ended his career with a Test aggregate of 7212 in 113 matches for an average of 42.17. Ganguly said that there was plenty of talent in India but the younger players who replace these stalwarts should be given a longer rope to establish themselves.

“One must also realise that when people like Gavaskar and Vengsarkar went, the Dravids, Tendulkars and Gangulys came. So there will be replacements. In India, there is so much talent. But it will happen only with time. The young players should be given time to establish themselves and become match-winners,” he said.

Asked whether India had a better team and an all-round attack compared to South Africa, Ganguly said: “I would not say that at that stage, to be honest. If you look at South Africa’s performance in the last nine series, they have not dropped a series. It’s been all round the world. They have beaten Australia in Australia, they went to England and beat them convincingly.”

On the government’s decision to call off India’s cricket tour of Pakistan, the former captain said it was the right decision under the circumstances. “In the current situation, the best thing is to withdraw from cricket. After what happened in Mumbai and from TV and other reports, there is lot to it than what I see. From that point of view, going to Pakistan at this stage will not be right and the government has done the right thing,” he said.

Only a week back, Sachin Tendulkar had also backed the government’s decision to scrap the tour saying the Mumbai tragedy was far bigger than any cricket tour or sports.—Agencies