Click to play videoThe end of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has turned a chapter in Indian cricket in more ways than one. Anil Kumble retired after the Delhi Test and now it was the turn of Sourav Ganguly to take his last bow. It was an emotional day for the entire nation as Ganguly ended his Test career in Nagpur on Monday. The roar of the Royal Bengal Tiger will now fall silent.
Ganguly has been India's most successful Test skipper and is credited with instilling the fighting spirit in the team. Under him India regularly won Tests overseas, a feat which was an uncommon occurrence not so long ago. Moreover, he never took a step back even when he faced overwhelming odds.
He backed talented youngsters and encouraged them to give their best without any fear of failure. Even the all-powerful Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) failed to stop a youngster getting into the team if Ganguly believed that the player was ready for India Cap.
He gave Bengal a new hero to cheer about. But as he hangs his pads and keeps aside his bat, CNN-IBN show Face the Nation asks – Is Sourav Ganguly the last Bengali hero?
On the panel of experts to debate the topic were senior journalist and author of Sourav Ganguly's biography - Maharaja of Indian Cricket Debasish Datta; eminent movie director Anurag Basu and advertising professional Oindrilla Dutt.
Why is Sourav Ganguly such a big hero?
Debasish Datta began the debate saying that in the present scenario there is a dearth of heroes in West Bengal. Ganguly's stature in not only the state of West Bengal but in the entire nation is unmatched and the former Indian captain is indeed the 'best Bengali under the sun.'
"First of all, if you call Sourav Ganguly a Bengali hero, people will call us parochial. Ganguly never initiated any step that encouraged selection of players from Bengal or the East zone. He believed if you have ability, only then can you be picked. He was an Indian and he is above all these things. As Bengalis we are proud of him as after Pankaj Roy, there wasn't any Bengali cricketer who was so successful in the international arena. Also, football in Kolkata is also going down. So, there was no hero as far as sports is concerned and after Amartya Sen and Buddhadev Bhattacharya, the young generation had nothing to do but encourage Sourav. For the moment, I do go with the motion that Sourav at the moment is the best Bengali under the sun," said Datta.
Oindrilla Dutt believed Ganguly was so successful because he is an antithesis of a Bengali.
"His un-Bengaliness, his attitude and never-say-die spirit is his biggest contribution to our cricket team. It may have been important at one point in time to be a gentleman and do the right thing but I would rather see the team win. Sourav taught them that 'you don't have to always roll over and die; you don't have to first blink first in a confrontation if you are right.' He taught them to believe in themselves and to fight for what they believed in. That, I think, in hindsight will be seen as one major contribution," explained Dutt.
Ganguly - A hero of 'New India'
Anurag Basu thought that Ganguly's values were that of 'New India' that is brash, smart and flamboyant.
"He proved to the world that Bengalis are aggressive too. He was the example of the new generation. He had strength, tenacity and aggression. Taking Sourav's example, I am sure there will be a lot of more Bengali heroes in the future. I think he inspired a whole generation. He has inspired me and he has inspired many Indian cricketers to shed their inferiority complex and told them that Indians are not going to be pushovers anymore. It's just not about Bengalis, it's about the legacy that he has left for India," said Basu.
Datta said that Ganguly's tenure as skipper saw him being at loggerheads with the selectors and with the opposition. But Ganguly's conviction saw the emergence of a new and confident Indian team.
"One thing I can tell you that when he was the captain he used to have constant fights with the selectors. While he was the captain, he had to fight a lot for Yuvraj Singh. It was a tough battle but he enjoyed that. And today he is very happy that when he is leaving the scene, five to six cricketers who are regulars in the national team have been handpicked by him. So his legacy is about picking the right people for the right job and also, the never-say-die attitude. He is the guy who told Steve Waugh to shut up and kept him waiting at the toss. Ian Chappell and other Australians were extremely unhappy about his indiscipline but that was a strategy," revealed Datta.
Dutt believed Ganguly has been an inspiration to an entire generation and has shown the way to success.
"I think he has shown the youth this is possible and hopefully there will be a lot of youngsters who will be inspired to achieve at the national level, not just in sports but in other fields as well," said Dutt.
Ganguly, an inspiration
Dutt asserted that Ganguly has instilled India with the much-needed killer instinct and his role as the skipper changed the way India played their cricket.
"If I had to rate his contribution, more than what he has performed with the bat and the ball, it is that instinct that he has instilled in the Indian team is fantastic. I don't think we had that before him. It was so important for us to be thought of as good guys and to do the right thing, play it fair, be nice. He taught us it is not about being nice but results is what matters," stated Dutt.
Datta revealed that Ganguly was always an extremely confident individual and it was his self-belief that made him stand out.
"Nobody can inject killer instinct, it is an inbuilt thing and Sourav had it. After 1992 when he was out of the Indian team, I asked him - 'Do you think you will be able to make a comeback?' He said - 'It's just a matter of time. I can tell you except Sachin Tendulkar, I can match anybody.' I also wondered if he is saying it just to make a statement but gradually when I spent more time with him, I realised that God has given him special abilities and a special confidence," said Datta.
However, Datta hailed Rabindranath Tagore as the greatest Bengali but said Ganguly has given the entire nation some of the biggest moments of joy after independence.
"Rabindranath Tagore will be the greatest Bengali because he won the Nobel prize but the joy and Ganguly has given us and the never-say-die attitude in the Indian team today that we see has been given by him," concluded Datta.
SMS/Web poll result: Is Sourav Ganguly the last Bengali hero?
Yes: 57 per cent
No: 43 per cent
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