Name Hindi: सौरव गांगुली / Gender Man
Sourav Ganguly: The Prince of Kolkata
Considered as one of the greatest cricket captains India has ever seen, Sourav Chandidas Ganguly, popularly known as Dada (elder brother), has shown remarkable sportsmanship and leadership in his career spanning 16 years. Born on July 8, 1972, Sourav initiated his first step into international cricket in the year 1996. Throughout his tenure as an Indian cricketer till 2008, he had major contributions both as a left-hand batsman and captain.
Early Life
Born to a wealthy business-class family in Calcutta, West Bengal, India, Ganguly’s world was surrounded by cricket since his early childhood days. His elder brother belonged to a local club team of Bengali Cricketers which accelerated young Ganguly’s passion for the game and consequently molded him into an exceptional player later on.
Career Highlights
- Test Cricket: Ganguly made his test debut against England at Lord’s on June 20-24, 1996. He scored a century in this very match which added more fuel to his successful journey ahead. He played overall 113 Test matches scoring 7212 runs with an average of around 42.17.
- One Day Internationals(ODIs): Having debuted in ODI just five days before the Test debut against England again, Ganguly accomplished a benchmark by playing approximately 311 ODIs throughout his career scoring over 11k+ runs altogether.
- Captaincy: Being appointed as the captain of Indian Team after Tendulkar stepped down from his position in 2000, Ganguly proved to be an excellent decision-maker. His aggressive yet smart approach towards leading the team led India to several major victories and finals.
After-retirement: Administrative roles & Coaching
Post retirement, Sourav took on different roles serving cricket off the field too. He worked as a Cricket Commentator for various sports channels which added more credibility to match analysis due to his deep understanding of the game.
In addition, he also served as President within the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) where he brought significant changes by promoting domestic level players into the limelight.
Ganguly is currently holding President’s office at Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) since October 2019. Despite facing criticisms, his main aim according to interviews is ‘improving Indian Cricket’.
Sourav Ganguly has undoubtedly left behind a legacy not only for Indian but entire world cricket with his remarkable career play and regal leadership qualities. He still continues to influence current and future cricketers through his contributions post-retirement and thus proves himself true to his nickname- The Prince of Kolkata!
