Smith is in outstanding form at the moment, says Ganguly

Kolkata, April 7 (IANS) Rising Pune Supergiant and Australia skipper Steve Smith is in the form of his life, former India captain Sourav Ganguly said here on Friday.

Smith led from the front on Thursday in his franchise's seven-wicket win against two-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Mumbai Indians, scoring an unbeaten 84 off 54 balls, laced with seven fours and three sixes.

"He is in outstanding form at the moment," Ganguly, who captained Smith during his time at erstwhile Pune Warriors, told reporters on the sidelines of an apparel accessories, home furnishing and decor items store launch here.

"He is just a quality player and currently one of the world's best batsmen. He showed his class by switching formats so swiftly in such a short time," Ganguly said.

Smith captained Australia to a 1-2 series defeat against India in a hotly contested four-match affair recently. The 27-year-old right-hander who started his Test career as a leg-spinner and batted at No.8, finished as the top-scorer, amassing 499 runs in eight innings with an average of 71.28. He also notched up three centuries in the rubber.

Meanwhile, Ganguly, who was present during the IPL opening ceremony in Hyderabad, said the cash-rich league has gone from strength to strength over the years and is a "huge affair" now.

This is the tenth edition of the T20 extravaganza.