Laxman India's ace: Sourav

The Indian captain declared the Tests between the arch-rivals "more important than Ashes".

Declaring India-Pakistan Test matches as "more important than the Ashes", Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly has said stylish batsman VVS Laxman could be the Indian ace in the forthcoming home series.

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"All the players are good, but in this series I back VVS Laxman. My feeling is he is going to get a lot of runs in this series," Ganguly told a London based radio station.

Responding to Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq's comment that pressure would be on India to perform well at home, Ganguly said, "Irrespective of whether the two neighbours play in India or Pakistan, England, South Africa, wherever, the pressure on both the teams was equal.

"The conditions in India and Pakistan are similar — look at the wickets, grounds, climate and the atmosphere. When we went to Pakistan last year, the conditions for us were like being at home. Similar would be the case with Pakistan this time. Pressure is always there in international cricket, wherever you play."

Ganguly said: "Off the field, players of both the sides are good friends, but when we enter the field both teams want to win, as expectations are very high. Pressure and tension is there.

"I feel that an India-Pakistan match is much more than the Ashes (series between Australia and England). Look at the involvement and intensity here. In my view, India-Pakistan matches are more important than the Ashes."

Asked to comment on the view of many Pakistani commentators that the absence of Shoaib Akhtar and other players makes their team weak, Ganguly remarked, "It has become a system in the sub-continent where own people like to speak against their team.

"When we went to Australia someone had said the Aussies would win 3-0 or 4-0. It is a problem of the sub-continent. The results were for all to see.