Triumphant Dada
I follow/play cricket and resided in West Bengal for 4 years which entitles me to write about Dada aka Sourav Chandidas Ganguly, the second most successful Indian captain.I was shocked after he announced his retirement from all the forms of game. What made Dada different was his flamboyance and aggression.This marks an end of a golden chapter in the history of Indian cricket.
Each great person has critics. Dada too had suffered a fair share of criticism.Playing alongside a deity shadowed his otherwise fantastic achievements.But their was a quality in Dada which no other earlier Indian captains had. He was a born leader and cultivated young players into superstars.
I remember India participating in ICC championships, Kenya, with unknown players like Zaheer and Yuvraj. We deserved the cup but lost to Chris cairns’ stellar performance in the final.Nobody can forget the Natwest series final in 2001 and Dada’s famous shirt swinging reaction at Lords’ balcony.
The only time I thought that Dada and his team could not rise to the occasion was the 2003 World Cup final, but each Indian player got outplayed that day.Again Dada’s wonderful young team got overpowered by a better opposition.That too came after a very disappointing tour of New Zealand.
Sourav and Sachin were the best opening pair.I guess it was only Dada who can take care of both his batting and the captaincy together. Dravid and Sachin failed remarkably handling this dual responsibility. He was a genuine match winner, India never lost when Dada performed well (remember those sweet wins against Pakistan).
Nagma, Chappel and Short balls almost brought Dada’s downfall but he always came bouncing back. He could not lead Kolkata to a better performance in IPL. That is what probably cost him his place this year. But as they say greatness doesn’t have any expiry date.
I wish dada all the best for his future endeavors. Thanks for entertaining us with all those towering sixes.
