Cricket is a sport appreciated by everyone in the world. It is regarded to be the most loved sport and is a favourite to thousands of people, be it a child or old adults. Originally, the British initiated the playing of this game in India a long time back and recently there are a large number of incredible and successful professional players who have kept an incredible mark on the domain of cricket. Cricket lovers consider this game to be a way of uniting different nations in a healthy manner. The love for this game has increased so much that, in recent days there has been the practice of online cricket betting where more and more people are getting attracted to the game. When a cricket match begins, millions of people gather together to watch the live match video to amuse themselves.
The hard work of the extraordinary Indian players to bring the best out of them while playing has taken the popularity and love for Cricket in India to a remarkable level. Sourav Ganguly is one such brilliant cricketer who has been a game changer for the Indian cricket team. He is the pride of India and has established himself as one of the greatest left-handed opening batsmen in the world and also one of the most talented captains of the national cricket team during his cricket career. He has given some remarkable performances over the years and has been India’s most successful Test Captain. He is fondly called “Maharaja” of the Indian cricket team.
Early days of Sourav Ganguly’s cricket career:
Ganguly was extremely talented from a young age. He began his cricket career by participating in domestic matches. He gave outstanding performances in domestic tournaments like Ranji as well as Duleep trophies. His batting style caught the attention of many great cricketers. After playing in the Indian domestic tournaments from a young age, he was successful in acquiring an assuring position in the Indian National cricket team. His excellence got reflected in his successful performances against Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Australia. Moreover, the achievement of the Man of the Match awards increased his popularity more and more.
Sourav Ganguly played the first test match of his career against England. He joined the Second Test of a three-match series at Lord’s Cricket Ground, in England along with his teammate, Rahul Dravid. At that time, England was already the champion of the first test match. So, winning the second match was the only opportunity for the Indian team to come victorious. In his debut test match only, Ganguly proved his potential by scoring a century and became the pride of India. During the final match after the outstanding performance by his fellow cricketers, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif, Ganguly opened his shirt in the gallery and twirled it in the air with joy and delight to celebrate India’s triumph.
Afterwards, he was strongly criticized for such desperate behavior and for showing disrespect to the rules and regulations of the Lord. However, Ganguly being a firebrand expressed that he only tried to mimic the British cricketer, Andrew Flintoff, who did such an act during his visit to India. Following his success in numerous matches back to back, Ganguly, together with his teammate, Rahul Dravid, made 318 runs in the Cricket World Cup of 1999. This score is the highest partnership score ever made in the history of World Cup tournaments.
Sourav Ganguly as the captain :
In 2000, Sourav Ganguly was appointed as the captain of the Indian National Cricket team. As a Captain of the Indian team, Sourav Ganguly proved to be an outstanding performer. He is the first batsman who created a record by scoring 3 centuries the ICC champions trophy. In the year, 2003, India qualified for the World Cup Final after a long time since 1983. Though the Indian team lost against Australia, Ganguly himself had one of the best performances of his career. He scored 465 runs which include three centuries. In a match against Pakistan, in 2007, Ganguly’s record double century of his career made him the pride of our nation. 2007, was one of the most important years of his cricket career where he performed exceptionally well in both the Test and ODI matches. In the year 2008, the legendary cricketer, Sourav Ganguly brought down the curtains on his brilliant cricket career as he announced his retirement from international cricket matches. Finally, on 29th October 2012, he retired from all forms of Cricket which broke the hearts of thousands of his fans and followers.
Awards and Achievements:
Sourav Ganguly achieved a lot of success in his illustrious playing career. He was given the Sport star Person of the Year in 1998. In the same year only, he received the prestigious Arjuna Award for his stupendous performance in several matches. He received the prestigious Padma Shree as well as the Rammohan Roy Award for his exceptional and outstanding performances as the captain of the Indian cricket team. Moreover, he was honoured with Banga Bibhushan Award in the year 2013 by the government of West Bengal for his stupendous performances on the field of cricket.
Post-retirement life:
After his retirement from his playing career, Ganguly had been playing the role of an Indian cricket administrator and commentator. He became the President of the Cricket Association of West Bengal governing body for cricket. He was also selected as the President of the editorial board with Wisden India. In the year 2018, his autobiographical book, A Century is Not Enough got published. In March 2019, Ganguly was made the advisor of the Delhi Capitals IPL team. Later that year only, he was elected as the President of the Board Of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for his incredible leadership skills and abilities. He has been hosting the popular reality show, Dadagiri Unlimited, on the Bengali Television Channel, Zee Bangla, in the current years.
The life of this famous cricketer is an inspiration for millions of people. He is a legendary figure in the world of cricket who will always be respected by cricket enthusiasts. Sourav Ganguly had proved to be a great achiever throughout his glorious career.
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