'Loss-Making' - Sourav Ganguly's Honest Verdict Of U19 World Cups

image-lsg3vicnTeam India is set to play U19 WC Final on Sunday (x.com)

Team India is set to play the Under-19 World Cup 2024 final against Australia on Sunday at Willowmoore Park, Benoni.  They are coming on the back of a seven-match winning streak and would be eyeing on their sixth title ahead of the summit clash. 

Strangely, the Indian team have never hosted an under-19 World Cup in the tournament's history. Since it's inception, various countries have hosted the event but India. 

In an interview with RevSportz, Sourav Ganguly shared his views on the tournament. When asked about the reason behind India not hosting the tournament.

"There is no particular reason to it (India not hosting the U-19 World Cup). The other World Cups are played in India. What's wrong if this one is played in places where the senior World Cups don't take place that often? It's one way of taking the game to other countries," Ganguly said. 

Notably, India have hosted the senior men’s and women’s World Cup on numerous occasions. However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India has never shown interest in hosting an Under-19 World Cup. It’s fairly true that the tournament doesn’t bring as much revenue as the other ICC events. 

Ganguly agreed the fact that the Under-19 World Cup isn’t a profit-making tournament but doesn’t count it as the sole reason behind not hosting it.  

"You can say it's a loss-making tournament. Most World Cups not featuring the senior men's teams are non-profit. But that's not the reason the U-19 World Cup hasn't been played in India. And I think it's going to be held in India," he added.

It is worth mentioning that India are the most successful team in the history of the Under-19 World Cup. They have claimed the title as many as five times and reached the finals on eight occasions. 

Australian team is the second most successful outfit with three titles under their bag. Pakistan are at third spot with two titles, while England and South Africa have one title each.