Kolkata: Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly turns 47 today. Ganguly, who is affectionately called as Prince of Calcutta, is regarded as the change agent of Indian cricket for Men in Blue's success under his leadership, irrespective of home and away conditions.
Ganguly was born on 8th July in 1972 in Kolkata's Behala. He is credited for changing the face of Indian cricket in the aftermath of the match-fixing scandal that rocked the Indian cricket like never before. Ganguly and his 'Young Turks' brought a sea change to the Indian cricket defying all challenges.
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Youngsters like Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh and MS Dhoni made their India debut under his captaincy. These cricketers later went on to make immense contributions to the Indian cricket and finished their career as legends of the game.
Apart from his shrewd captaincy, Ganguly was also a naturally gifted left-handed batsman. The southpaw was reckoned as the 'God of off-side' for his exquisite off-drive through the cover region. He finished his career with 11,363 runs in 311 ODIs at an average of 41.02. In 113 Tests, he amassed 7212 runs at an average of 42.17. He is currently the third-highest run-getter for India in ODIs, and eighth-highest in the world.
Ganguly has 22 centuries and 72 half-centuries under his belt in the limited-overs format. His opening partnership with Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar is considered as one of the best in the world. The duo amassed 6609 runs in 136 innings, the highest by any opening pair in the format. Their highest score is 258.
Under Ganguly's leadership, India defied all odds to beat mighty Australia at the Eden Gardens in 2001. It was the time when nobody dared to think about beating Australia who were regarded invincible. In 2002, Ganguly's India won NatWest Trophy chasing down England's daunting 325 at the Lord's. It must be noted that 300 was not a par score in the early years of this millennium. So, it is reckoned as one of the landmarks of Indian cricket.
In 2003, India played the final of World Cup for the first time after 1983 under Ganguly inspiring leadership. Unfortunately, they fell short of the 360-run massive target by 125 runs against Australia in Johannesburg, South Africa.
However, Ganguly's illustrious career was not easy at all as had to go through torrid time as well.
Even after taking India to a new height as a captain and batsman Ganguly had to go through a tough phase of his career when former India coach Greg Chappell and then selection committee dropped him from the team after India's 2005 tour of Zimbabwe.
Like a champion, Ganguly made a valiant cameback in the international cricket in 2006 setting an example for many in the front of life.
He then went to play 2007 World Cup as an opener but Rahul Dravid-led team was knocked out from the tournament by Bangladesh and Sri Lanka from the group stage, a new low in Indian cricket. Chappel's decision to keep trying players at different positions had unsettled the team that proved to be fatal for Dravid's team.
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However, absorbing the pressure Ganguly gave a fitting reply to Chappel playing one after another stunning knock in Tests and ODIs. His 98 against Windies in Nagpur ODI saw him making a heroic comeback in the international cricket after going through the hardships on and off the field.
However, he never got a hundred after that comeback. He last slammed an ODI ton against Kenya in 2003 World Cup semifinal.
The Kolkata cricketer bade adieu international cricket in 2008, scoring 85 and a duck in his final Test against Australia in Nagpur under MS Dhoni's captaincy.
