A Tale of Two Captains - Part 1

2nd April 2011 is an amazing memory for all the Indian cricket fans. Dhoni & Co deserve all the superlatives that will be hurled at them now. Of course, we all have invested emotions in this team in some way or other. Among all this euphoria, I remembered 1 man again who certainly did have a big hand in this. And it was great when Kapil cried and made me too shed a tear, but then he did make a great point. Kapil said that the process began in 2000 under the captaincy of Saurav Ganguly. He brought aggression to the team and the team completely changed under him.

I love watching the game not just for the shots or the deliveries or for the catches... but for the stories the game can tell and the characters that are exhibited. Unlike any other game, this is one of the greatest thing about cricket. It will showcase your heart, passion and intelligence. Fortunately, with the advent of TV, we are able to deciper (atleast I always notice) the body language and gestures of the players. It can be Sachin's fierce determination or Rahul's tensed and intense waiting for the bowler or Saurav's passion when he is batting to prove something or Dhoni's almost teary eyed look of dismay to square leg (when he got out in the Australia Q/f, caught at point).

So let's see if we can weave a story around the tale and times of 2 cricket captains of our nation.

Amidst all the controversy around betting and fixing and then the subsequent refusal of Sachin to take the burden (responsibility) of captaincy, it was handed over to the Prince of Kolkatta. Saurav has had a life of a prince for sure with all his riches. But then, he was hardened enough. Selected and dropped after playing just 1 game in 1992, then having the cheek to tell his father that he will be the captain of the Indian cricket team to becoming the second most reliable batsman of the Team, it was an amazing journey. Perhaps, being born in one of the most passionate regions of the country too must have helped. In his 1st match as a full time captain against South Africa in 2000, he surprised us by giving the 48th or 49th over to Rahul Dravid who then took his first wicket (Herschelle Gibbs). India had in that instance too chased down a huge total of 302 runs. But other than that, there were many changes behind the screen. Before Ganguly, the captain had no say in the Selection matters. But a defiant Ganguly fought the system and changed it. We saw a string of players coming in and also being given enough of chances. Ganguly's stubbborness for getting Harbhajan against the Aussies in the "greatest series of alltime" must be appreciated for his foresightedness. If the selectors had their say, it would be Sarandeep Singh who would have played that series and Harbhajan might have become a truck driver in USA. The injection of youth, sticking with them and giving them enough chances helped us in forming an amazing future crux of the team in the likes of Yuvraj, Mohd. Kaif (wherever he is now), Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan and yes of course, Dhoni himself. Before Ganguly, the Indian team was just an ascension from the big city teams. We would never ever hear of players who used to play for smaller cities. But then it all changed, it had too. With a huge country and keeping the selection panel too some cities would be a glaring error.

Ganguly has always trusted his instincts. He has tried his best to lead from the front. One of my friends says about a Test Match where it was too early to send in a night watchman and too late to send in Sachin. So he walked in and batted the day out. The biggest impact of Ganguly's captaincy was Rahul Dravid glaring back and charging (walking) towards the bowler who had some words for him ( if I remember correctly it was against a SAF bowler). If Dravid did that, it means that this mode of aggression was talked about in the dressing room and team meetings. There must be directives that we are not going to take it lying down. We are great crickteters and our game can do the talking but ensure that the lips do too. Australia were surprised and they still have not got over it. India were a force to reckon with. Sledge at your own peril. What a transformation? It is so difficult to even pen it down. But let me remind all of the greatest turning points of Indian Cricket, the ones which changed it all: 1.) India's win against the Aussies in 2001, the Greatest Test match ever 2.) Natwest Finals 2001 - India chasing the then highest record of 326 And both came under the captaincy of Saurav. India was never a 1 man team after that, Aussies are still getting beaten in cricket as well as the other game of sledging and the process of becoming a dominant cricketing side and the strides towards it were taken in giant strides.

For me and as would be for all the Indian fans, Ganguly waving his shirt in the "divine" Lords dressing room verandah sums up everything he was. The one who wears his heart in his sleeves, the passionate, stubborn and at times so adamant to the edge of arrogance. India had finally found a leader who did not mince words, was not interested in being a diplomat, was battle hardened with all the criticisms he had got and supported his teammates like anything.

An Ode to the Big Three - Saurav Ganguly

Amid match fixing allegations and investigations, CBI cleared 3 men off their radar saying that they were not at all involved in it - Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Saurav Ganguly. Indian cricket still had a lot to look forward to. Enthusiasm was at an all time low and a lot of pessimism among the Indian cricket fans. Little did we all know that this would be a perfect setting for the men in blue to start a new age golden era with newer attitude and grit. Oh Captain!! My Captain!! The Prince of Calcutta along with John Wright brought about a remarkable change in Indian cricket.

But before all this, lets speak about Saurav the player. First picked in 1992 and thrown back out of the team, this guy had the guts to tell his dad that he will be the Captain of Indian cricket team. Then after 4 years, he was selected. On this news Bishen Singh Bedi (legendary Indian spinner) quotes "Sourav Ganguly is a proven failure" while Tiger Pataudi (great Indian Cricket Captain) quotes "His selection proves quota system is still prevelant". And Saurav's response was nothing but just a century in each of his 1st 3 Test matches wow... and then there was no turning back. All his career, he has been bestowed with the unenviable role of proving his critics wrong and there was no shortage for that. He has always been a few shots away from greatness and his weaknesses is something that is known by every other bowler now. But I choose not ever to speak about his innings or stats here because his contributions are more than that. He is an inspiration for the human in me, in all of us.

Sourav the captain, knew what he wanted, trusted his gut feelings and trusted his teammates. It is only because ; of his stubborness that Harbhajan Singh was picked ahead of Sarandeep Singh for the 2001 Series against Australia ; he spotted Mahendra Singh Dhoni and wanted him to be included in the side; Yuvraj Singh has been able to hold on to his spot in the team inspite of inconsistent performance. But maybe more that this, his contribution to Indian Cricket was the shift in attitude and self-belief. He was a fearless captain and very instinctive and the team reflected that. Under him, the adjective Team India was coined. Under him, Team India would not shy away from any verbal confrontation and would take the other teams in their home turfs. This started getting reflected in the Away wins we started to have. Under him, youngsters got a lot of chances (although Aakash Chopra might not agree to that). To quote from article I read after his dishonourable exclusion from the side, "Maybe the powers that are will determine that this man will never play agin for India but the the current youngsters like Yuvrajs, Pathans, MSD, who are playing for Team India and the ones after them need to remember that there is 1 man to thank for who paved the way for them".

Well to say the least, Saurav was so human like all us. So imperfect and yet too stubborn, So self-confident almost on the verge of looking arrogant (and arrogant too he might be) and many a times so full of himself and yes, so unpredictable. It was this quality along with him deliberately assuming an aggressive body language at times but also, always wearing his heart on his sleeve that endeared him to us. With Sachin it was always awe, with Rahul it was always respect, with Saurav we felt too connected to love him or loathe him or hate him. We have all secretly admired him as he showed us that for all our imperfections and with all our imperfections, we still can take on the world. For that and only for that, you will always be my favourite criketer ever.


I hope I am keeping aside the topic of cricket for some time on this blog until such time arises that the game inspires and invites me to write again.