Kolkata, Aug. 7: Former India captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth feels that Sourav Ganguly has been treated badly and a player of his stature deserved a more honourable exit from the game.

Talking to this correspondent, the swashbuckling former opener, said: "Ganguly has captained the team for a long time. The country has achieved so much under him...

"But after contributing so much you do not deserve that kind of treatment. They have really treated him very badly."

Though Srikkanth refused to elaborate further about the "they", he said the deposed India captain was a much more aggressive leader than present Team India skipper Rahul Dravid.

"Dravid is a softer person in comparison to Ganguly. He (Dravid) stresses on technicality whereas Ganguly was very aggressive and strong on the field."

Praising Ganguly’s effort of sweating it out at Northamptonshire, Srikkanth said it was a "bad phase" that Ganguly was going through, adding that the he still had a chance to regain his place in the national side.

Referring his own example of making a comeback after being out for two years, Srikkanth said: "After all this is a bad phase for him. Even I made a comeback after being out for two years. It needs strong will power and he (Ganguly) should not worry."

Srikkanth felt that the inclusion of Ganguly in the World Cup team would not only add to the batting strength but also make India a strong contender for the trophy.

"He is a very good batsman with a tremendous record.

"His inclusion in the team will definitely add to India’s chances at the World Cup," the 47-year old felt.