Saurav Ganguly, the Prince of Calcutta has a fan following of millions and that is justified considering the number of winning knocks he has played for India. His batting is the perfect blend of elegance and power. He has all the traditional style that goes with left handed batsmanship. He is also a superb/ perfect timer of the ball. The manner in which he steps out and pounces on the ball, like a tiger on a hapless prey, is something to be enjoyed on the spot. He is one of the most aggressive Captain India has ever had and has emerged as one the key components of the Indian team. His ability to play shots on the off side is special because there are very few players who can hit the ball in that area as crisply as he does. He is an aggressive left-handed batsman and is also an effective (right-handed) medium pace bowler.
He started his international career as a 19 year old during the tour to Australia in 1991-92 where both his ability and attitude was questioned. His recall for the 1996 tour to England was severely criticised as one of the evils of India's "quota" system. But he answered that in style by not only scoring centuries in his first two Test innings but also capturing vital wickets to bag the Man of the series award. Still he was considered fit only for the Test matches because of his inability to play onside strokes. He worked on that problem and became a household name in India after the Sahara Cup in Toronto where he won several matches for India against Pakistan. Besides several superlative batting performance (including 75* in 75 balls), he exploited the conditions to return some excellent bowling figures (including 5-16). He is often criticised for his running between the wickets and if he works on that, the way he has worked on his leg-side then he will definitely become a formidable force in the World of Cricket.
Family: Dad's Name : Chandi Das Ganguly Wife's Name : Dona Ganguly Ganguly was born to a life of luxury and comfort as he was the son of an affluent printer. Ganguly is perhaps one of the richest Indian cricketer of recent times. Ganguly's father presides over a big joint family of over 50 people, though they all do not live in the same house. There are 22 bedrooms in his house, and the family possesses over 20 cars.
An under-15 Orissa cricket team happened to be in Calcutta, and Sourav happened to smash them with a century. Young Sourav had found his métier. But the pain was yet to come. A hundred (121) for East Zone against West Zone in the Duleep Trophy in 1991 earned Sourav a place on the tour of Australia in 1991-92. He was played in only one One-day International match and was then forgotten for over four years. He thought that his career as an international cricketer was over as he was ridiculed as a non-talent, and it was alleged that he had 'attitude problems'. They said he refused to carry drinks for his teammates, he was too high-headed and arrogant, he behaved like a Maharaja, an emperor. None of it was true, says Sourav. But the labels stuck, and Sourav was a forgotten man. He was left alone to sort out his career, and to reinforce his shattered confidence, with some help from an English rugby team sports psychologist.
His first step towards cricket: ----------------------------------
Ganguly's first step towards cricket was a happy accident of fate: Ganguly was not encouraged to play cricket because his parents wanted him to focus on his studies. But his elder brother Snehasish was an accomplished cricketer. He was a left-hander so Sourav simply followed his brother and started playing with left hand. It was convenient for him because he could thus use his brother's cricket equipment; for his fans, it was a blessed stroke of luck, for the joys of the left-handed drive in cricket surpass almost everything else. One fine day during his holidays, Sourav asked his father to get him enrolled in a cricket academy as he was finding difficult to pass his time.
But fate had more surprises in store. Sourav was chosen to tour England with the Indian team in 1996. Navjot SinghSidhu, his roommate on the tour, chose to walk out of the team after a misunderstanding with captain Azharuddin, while Sanjay Manjrekar was injured. Sourav thus got a chance to make his Test debut. There was a crescendo of criticism on his selection for the tour; that the Bengal lobby was at the base of his inclusion was the harsh and unanimous verdict. But all that lasted only till the second Test at Lord's where he blasted a superb century.
Sourav Ganguly is a quiet, unassuming, undemonstrative man with nerves of steel. As the current captain of the team, Ganguly's aggressive batting and big scores testify to the fact that he has learnt to deal with pressure and the burden of leading the country does not constraint him. In fact, the responsibility seems to have had an encouraging effect; he is beginning to emerge from the shadow of Sachin Tendulkar. Sourav is a deeply religious person and observes a fast every Tuesday.
You all will be surprised to know that 'Football' is Saurav's first love. He played for his school football team for four years. But since there were not many opportunities in football, he shifted to cricket. This shift of game was because of his father, who made him join a cricket coaching club. His father Mr. Chandi Ganguly had also played for the state.
He is married to Dona, who was a next-door neighbour to the Ganguly family. Their fathers were once friends but the relationship was strained and the young couple got married under cover. It was a typical Hindi movie love story where the hero and heroine are separated by their parents and so they run off to get married. And like the movie ends their families too reconciled but only in the end i.e. after the marraige.
Now we will tell you a private habit of your favourite cricketer.............The first thing Saurav does after he checks into a hotel room is to place the portrait of goddess Kali and the picture of his wife Dona on his bed side table. For this Bengal Tiger there is nothing more relaxing than watching Dona (his wife who is a classical dancer) perform a dance routine.
Ganguly was appointed the Captain of the Indian cricket team in February, 2000. Ganguly was the Man of the Series in the New Zealand-India 5 match ODI series in November 1999. Ganguly made a mammoth 183 against Sri Lanka in World Cup 1999, which, at that time, was the Highest ODI Score by an Indian, beating Kapil Dev's Record of 175*. Ganguly was the Man of the Series in the Pepsi Cup 1999 (March-April) for scoring 278 runs and taking 6 wickets in total. Saurav Ganguly has the distinction of being one of the few players in the World to Score a century and take 4 wickets in the same match. (ODIs) Saurav Ganguly along with Tendulkar forms the 4th Best Opening Pair in the History of One-day cricket. Saurav Ganguly and Tendulkar were involved in a World Record Opening Partnership of 252. Saurav Ganguly scored a Century on Debut at Lords in 1996, and went on to score a century in the very next match as well. Saurav Ganguly was named Sport star Person of the Year 1998. He also won the Arjuna Award in 1998. Saurav Ganguly was the Highest Run-Scorer for India in ODIs in 1997. In the Sahara Cup 1997, Saurav Ganguly set a new World Record for 5 consecutive Man of the Match Awards. He was also the Man of the Series.
Something About Ganguly: " A very challenging and aggressive cricketer from the state of Bengal in form of a Classy Batsman , good fielder , pretty handy bowler and all sporting spirit," His aggressive brand of cricket has set a new trend of aggression that is prevalent among the youngsters, SEHWAG, KAIF, ZAHEER and YUVRAJ. This aggressive cricket has been subjected to useless and senseless criticisms by slobs ,such as BISHEN SINGH BEDI, RAVI SHASHTRI, NAVYOT SINGH SIDHU ( At Times). Bishen singh Bedi being the usual suspect saying something or the other using the few english words he possesses in his limited vocabulary." Mild mannered at heart , good looking and pleasant appearance." So as we know that Tendulkar to be the best batsmen in India or so for that matter , the whole world but Saurav Ganguly can easily be considered one of best left handed batsmen in the Whole globe.Sourav being the First Captain after 20 years to make us reach the World Cup Finals. Let us see what more in reserve for Sourav and the great Indian cricket team...
