Click to play videoHow will we remember Sourav Ganguly? The God on the off-side, a captain beyond compare, or a man who lived by his own rules and made some new ones?
Ganguly on Tuesday decided to end his cricket career, a career that leaves us with memories that generations will cherish. We lived in a time when Ganguly made us gasp in admiration.
CNN-IBN celebrated the career of India's most successful captain along with Sharda Ugra, Deputy Editor, India Today, former India and Bengal player Deep Dasgupta, former Pakistan captain Moin Khan, and former India coach Lalchand Rajput.
Averaging more than 40 in both forms of the game, Ganguly is just 112 runs short of completing 7,000 runs in Test cricket.
Chairman of selectors Krishnamachari Srikkanth earlier told CNN-IBN that the choice was left to him whether to call time on his career, after speculation over an alleged deal between the BCCI and senior players of an 'honourable exit'.
Sharda Ugra chose to go with the players' version, saying there was no such deal. "Sections of the Board are out to make themselves important, while the players insist there has been no such deal. The senior players will all say they have done it keeping the team's interest in mind. The senior players said that none of them were approached. It just depends on who you want to believe. I would obviously go with Sourav Ganguly."
In the press conference, Ganguly said he didn't expect to be picked for the Test series after being ignored for the Irani Trophy. Former India coach Lalchand Rajput believes that perhaps Ganguly started thinking about it after the Irani Trophy match.
"It was a bold decision. I know how hard it is to quit playing cricket after playing for so long. He made the decision at the right time because this is an important series. He knows that he won't have any pressure, so he can go out there and play freely and retire on a high. Perhaps he felt he was on the firing line all the time. And now that he has quit, let someone else be on the firing line," Rajput told CNN-IBN, adding that he didn't suspect any deal between the former India captain and the BCCI.
But was it the right time? Although the debacle in Sri Lanka would be clearly etched in mind, Ganguly's career graph since his comeback in December 2006 has been remarkable. He has averaged 45.05 since, more than his career stats.
"I guess it was a lot of pressure. It's also a good time because a lot of youngsters are doing well too. But as his recent stats show, he is quitting quite close to his peak," observed Ganguly's former team-mate Deep Dasgupta.
Farewells have often been scripted terribly in India and Pakistan. "This is why it's a bold decision—India are playing Australia at home—for a cricketer like Sourav Ganguly. He has seen a lot of hard times, but his comeback set has set a benchmark for youngsters all over the world. You keep trying till you succeed," said Moin Khan, Ganguly's long-time adversary.
However, Ganguly has made it a habit of stunning people, as he did with this announcement. "None of us had any idea about this," Dasgupta said. "We all thought he had half a season or so left in him. But that's the way he has been. He loves being in control. He likes to call the shots himself," he said, adding that he had always been an admirer of Steve Waugh, and perhaps the thought of a 'farewell series' came was inspired from the former Australian captain.
More than his exploits with the bat in Tests, Ganguly has been known for his performances in the one-day arena, despite being axed from the ODI set-up during the turn of the year. Ranked No. 4 among the highest ODI centurions, he may have had a few more ODIs left in him.
"He did feel that he had a lot of cricket left in him, especially in the one-day version. After the Australia series at home last year, he really wanted to be part of the ODI team in the CB Series. But he was left out," Rajput explained.
Ganguly the captain
From being dismissed as "Maharaj" to his regal batsmanship to his combative leadership, Ganguly knew how to do it only one way, and that was his way.
"The century that he scored in Brisbane in 2003-04 symbolised the way he captained the team, what the team achieved under his captaincy. That was the time India really took on the Australians in their own backyard," Sharda Ugra said, choosing Ganguly's 144 as the defining moment of his career, and moreover, as captain.
Dasgupta, who had been in the Bengal set-up when Ganguly made his Test debut in 1996, said people back home always knew of his talent, but never quite expected such a remarkable entry into Test cricket. "We all knew he was gifted, but scoring a hundred on debut at Lord's and backing it up with another century. he just took off from there. We were surprised. He never looked back."
Ganguly's captaincy, however, will be the most talked about aspect in the years to come. This is the time when people think Ganguly had arrived, that it was his true calling.
"Ganguly was a very aggressive captain. He brought the team to the level we are now. He backed the younger players. He backed Harbhajan, Yuvraj, Sehwag and Parthiv Patel to the extent that they were given the licence to play freely while their captain would be behind them. A lot of confidence is required for a player to perform. He made the players feel that they can do it and win a game from any situation. He inspired them to believe in themselves," Rajput said.
Also part of that winning phase was former India coach John Wright. "Wright and Ganguly argued a lot," recalls Sharda Ugra, who helped Wright in his book Indian Summers. "But what Wright said about him was that Sourav was very good at working with the younger players. He was very strong in picking and backing a certain kind of player. He said he wanted to back a match-winner."
Dasgupta adds, "He exactly knew what to tell me to get the best out of me, he knew what to tell Rahul (Dravid) to get the best out of him, and the same with the younger players."
Moin Khan too thinks Indian cricket changed when Ganguly became the captain. "I have even played Under-19 cricket with him. And I could see he was a good communicator, which is essential for a captain. He is respected by his colleagues as well as opponents. And he gave Indian cricket this new direction."
Although his performances as a batsman seem to have dipped during his time as captain, but never let it affect him. "He did talk a lot about it; he is quite theatric and emotional personality. But captaincy always affect the player's performances, with Rahul Dravid being another example," pointed out Sharda Ugra.
Ganguly has had a habit of proving his critics wrong, and now that he has announced his retirement, there won't bee too much pressure on him to perform in the Test series against Australia.
"Sourav loves to play against Australia. He scored a century in Brisbane when people had written him off saying he couldn't do it on the bouncier pitches there. He scored a couple of fifties this time as well, but couldn't convert them. So this is the time he wants to prove that he wants to go out on a high," Rajput said.
What next for Ganguly?
Ganguly has been a great cricketer, India's most successful captain and also a charismatic person.
"He is dream material for journalists," says Sharda Ugra, hinting at his possible future in television commentary. "But I hope he will become a selector because he is good at picking talent. He will be able to bulldoze his way through selection committee processes. He will be around for a long time in Indian cricket, bringing his vast range of skills into play."
Sourav Ganguly's passion for the game never seems to have diminished as he got older. Would the younger cricketers treasure as much as Ganguly, the love of playing for India?
"It will be, although it is a little diluted with a lot of things coming into cricket. The pride of playing for India will never wane. Sourav glorified playing for India, be it at the balcony at Lord's, he did everything with passion. I was with him for those two years when he was out of the Indian team and every evening he used to say he would come back," Dasgupta said.
Pressure on other seniors?
Does Ganguly's retirement put pressure on the other seniors over their future?
Sharda Ugra summed it up by saying, "I don't know whether it will put pressure on the others, but it is certainly the beginning of the end of India's greatest Test players together. He has kicked off the fact that an era is going to come to and end, and we all have to accept it."
Sourav Ganguly's retirement certainly signals the end of the era of India's most successful captain and a cricketer who will hope to leave on a high note during the Test series against Australia.
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