Sourav Ganguly and the order of the Phoenix

 

 

Fairy tales and sports share an old alliance. Everytime an underdog upsets the top dog, everytime a team triumphs against all odds, it feels nothing short of a fairytale. And everytime a fallen hero makes a triumphant comeback (defying his critics and decimating all doubters)—well, now that’s ‘the stuff a real ‘Cinderella’ story is made of! Sourav Chandidas Ganguly is currently living that tale. He is no stranger to comebacks, having made one right at the start of his career. He was picked for the Australia tour of 1991-92 but was sent back home due to ‘disciplinary issues’ and never picked till that magical summer of 1996 when he scored a majestic century at Lord’s and hasn’t looked back since.

And if his form in the recent series against Pakistan is anything to go by (he aggregated the most runs in the series, picked up the Man of the Series award and scored a century and a double century in consecutive tests) he is far from done. The fascinating bit is not that he was the star in a series which also had India’s other ‘fab four’ batsmen and their illustrious cross border counterparts in the fray, but that the man we are talking about was not even in the team about a year back. Pakistani pace ace Shoaib Akhtar points out the irony as he told TSI, “Cricket can take funny turns in Asia. The board had decided to drop Ganguly but his abilities as a captain cannot be questioned. Such things happen in Pakistan also. He has surely come back with a bang and has given an answer to those who doubted his abilities.” The Pakistan series puts the exclamation mark on a stunning comeback story that began scripting late last year on the bouncy tracks of South Africa. Selectors, bereft of viable options on an arduous tour, picked the veteran and everyone gave him as much chance as a snowflake in the desert. That snowflake not only survived the desert, but has now transformed into a snowball that’s buried all the acrimony and criticism levelled at India’s most successful captain during those ‘Greg’ful days of Indian cricket. Mohinder ‘Jimmy’ Amarnath, who knows a thing or two about comebacks, says, “It’s definitely not easy to have such a great comeback after you have been dropped. I hope his form continues. He has managed to answer the critics with this performance. He was absolutely outstanding in these series. I am very happy for him.” His resurgence might seem a simple story of a great comeback by a good player, but when the man in question is ‘Dada’ Sourav Ganguly, nothing is ‘simple’.

TSI had commissioned an opinion poll just after Sourav was dropped from the team, and the fans wanted ‘Dada’ back in the team and at the helm. That wisdom of the crowds, though, fell on deaf ears and India returned from the World Cup to jeers and boos after their worst showing in 28 years! TSI once again insisted that Dravid’s insipid leadership was not enough to revive the team and needed a fiery and dogged character like Ganguly to light the fire in the belly. Finally, as the team set out for South Africa, where it had been winless in Tests till last year, the selectors relented. Ganguly announced his arrival with a fighting fifty in a low scoring match that India won, his contribution proving invaluable. He was out of the team for almost a year, but instead of brooding over his fate and trying to substantiate conspiracy theories he went back to the basics. He played in the league, the Ranji trophy, worked on his weaknesses (“I had exposed his weakness to the short ball…. but Ganguly has worked on this weakness” concedes Shoaib Akhtar) and quietly racked up performances that made the selectors sit up and take notice. Ajay Jadeja salutes Sourav’s cricketing as well as metal abilities as he told TSI “I wish he keeps performing like this. He always had the potential and I believe he will keep performing like this.” Chapell left as coach, Dravid steered clear of captaincy and Indian cricket went through an upheaval. Ganguly went through it all, only letting his batting (and occasionally bowling) do the talking. Former Indian player Nikhil Chopra is excited as he speaks of Ganguly’s comeback. He said, “The manner in which Ganguly was treated was definitely wrong. We cannot take away the fact that he was a successful captain and so should have been treated with respect. Sourav has again come back in great form and its good to see him perform.” But captaincy appears distant according to Chopra, who thinks, “He will not be able to make it to the captaincy again because we have new talents.” As he gears up for what will be his 100th test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, he will go there on the back of a memorable hundred in front of his home fans, his first career double hundred and a magical year so far where he’s touched almost a 1000 runs. That confidence in itself coupled with the steely resolve he has always shown despite being constantly under scrutiny and pressure would be warning enough for the Aussies not to take him lightly. Sports Illustrated once ranked the resurrection of Jesus Christ as the top comeback of all time. Sourav’s is not quite there yet, but it would surely have ranked highly on that list. Minutes on Maharaj To trace Sourav’s blazing comeback trail, TSI caught up with former selector and Ranji winning Bengal captain Sambaran Banerjee, who has seen the evolution of the Ganguly phenomenon in international cricket from close quarters

You have seen Sourav for quite a while. What is the one quality or one exceptional thing about him that makes him a special cricketer?

I have seen him since he was a seven year old child. His father used to play cricket and that’s how I knew the family. I was his captain in his first Ranji match which happened to be the final! And, in 1996, I was the east zone selector as well when he was picked for England. Of course, it was just a coincidence and nothing else! (smiles) I think the one quality that sets him apart is that he has been mentally very strong right from childhood. I observed him in school matches where he was not afraid to hit the big sixes.

Your thoughts on Ganguly’s comeback and his performance against Pakistan…

I don’t think the Pakistan series is a comeback for him. His real comeback was when, after being out of the Indian team for 10 months and 11 days before India went to South Africa. Those two innings in South Africa at Johannesburg and Durban gave him tremendous confidence and cricket is basically a game of confidence. And in the Pakistan series he has exhibited the best possible batting of his life.

What has been the secret of his resurgence? Is it more to do with technical adjustments or is it psychological?

Cricket is basically a mental game and he is mentally very strong. This courage of his has pulled him through. At the international level there isn’t much difference in skill among the top players and it’s only about psychological factors. He concentrated very hard during the Pakistan series and had done good homework against Shoaib Akhtar; any bouncer he bowled Sourav did not offer a shot. Its good planning that has resulted in his success.

He has always been under constant scrutiny and tremendous pressure—whether in success or in failure. How has Sourav handled all the tough times?

Those 10 months and 11 days he was out of the Indian team were perhaps the toughest times of his career. He dealt with it very well showing mental resilience and going back and doing a wonderful job in domestic cricket in the Ranji and Duleep trophy. He had to play in a lot of unknown places and still he did well.

And surely, all this while he has received good support from his family…

He has got an absolutely fantastic cricket family - his brother plays cricket, his father used to play cricket and so have his uncles. Being born and brought up in a cricketing environment has meant he has the maturity and understanding to deal with tough times like these. So, yes the tremendous support from his family and his fans has played a big part.