Apr 12, 2005 09:24 AM
3593 Views
(Updated Apr 12, 2005 09:26 AM)
A PLAYER AND A CAPTAIN
The sacking of Saurav Ganguly is what most of the Indian fans want now, but if some one ask me if he should be dropped, the answer is ''no'' and nothing else, considering his achievements as a captain as well as in the form of a player. He is nearing 10,000 runs in One Day cricket and I wonder if any one can say that it is not an achievement.
Every one goes through bad times. Sachin Tendulkar could get only 12 runs from the first 3 matches - Yuvraj and Kaif had been failing for a long time, and sill seems to stay in the One Day team. These two ''young blood'' in the team haven't even managed to achieve half the achievements that Saurav has got. Still Saurav is the only one to be thrown out of the team!
THE HISTORY SPEAKS
Saurav has proved his ability as a captain by giving India lots memorable victories and also by supporting youngsters like Balaji, Zaheer Khan and Pathan. He is the Indian captain with most overseas victories as well as the maximum test victories. He had been an asset to the Indian team in the recent past.
The fact is that Rahul Dravid will not be a better captain and Tendulkar was never a success as a captain. Then, just like South Africa did, will the captaincy be given to some one with comparitively low experience? That will not be the best of ideas.
THINK THE OTHER WAY
Instead of thinking about Saurav's failures, these critics should think about his great innings. Just like 183 vs Srilanka letting India post a massive victory, the 124 vs Pakistan which helped India to chase 316.
Even Saurav's centuries against Kenya has come at a situation when ''the great'' Indian batting lineup including the so called ''master blaster'' seemed to be rowing the boats with the bat.
THE SWEET MEMORIES
If you have seen the Sahara Cup between India and Pakistan at Toronto, you will not say that he cannot bowl well. He should have tried some bowling to increase his confidence. If everyone who can't perform well are dropped, it would have been a different Indian team now - 90% of the players would have been different.
It is a known fact that Saurav is low in confidence these days, but form is not the major factor for it. The unnecessary criticism is a highly inflammable thing as long as a batsman is concerned, because what these do is demoralising the players. This had started from the moment Saurav became the captain - I wonder if someone didn't like removing Tendulkar from the captaincy.
THE QUALITY PLAYER
Saurav has been a hardworking cricketer in the field and an inspiration to the team members. Even if he got less control over his emotions, he has always been solid at press conferences, never submitting to any stupid questions. He has been a tough guy and he tells what is in his mind, unlike those who keeps everything in mind.
This straight forward mind of Saurav may be a major reason why some people hate him. Well, truth is not always sweet. His aggression and alertness are to be mentioned. He even stepped down the order for Shewag and Tendulkar to open the innings, now even down the order for Dhoni at number 4.
THE CAPTAINCY
Lets have a look at his quick changes - Ajit Agarkar was send at Number 3 and he scored 95. Parthiv Patel was send for opening in a test match for the first time and he scored a fifty. And the latest addition to it is that Dhoni, the new wicket keeper batsman of India has scored 148, destroying the Pakistani bowling. These are some poor decisions?
'The Lord Of The Off Side', 'Bengal Tiger' and the 'Prince Of Kolkata' - all these names given to Saurav shows how great a player he was. He still got the skills as we see those few boundaries that he has hit. If he gets a chance to play against spinners, I think that he can get back to form and gain some confidence.
THE ACHIEVEMENTS
The fastest player to get 7000, 8000 and 9000 runs in One Days cricket has also got four consecutive Man Of the Match awards at Toronto which is quite an achievement. He is the Number 2 batsman in the number of centuries and would have scored more if not stepped down the order.
His inability to hit bouncers had been something that the critics always targeted. But the fact is that he has hit some beautiful shots off them in the past, but they fail to remember those. The victories attained by the Indian team are credited to the whole team and losses always comes upon Saurav's shoulders.
I don't think that many people knows about the pressure of leading an inconsistent team like India, in which even veterans like Tendulkar and Azharuddin had problems.
THE FORMER RUN MACHINE
If you can remember those days when he kept on scoring runs, you will never say ''drop him''. The flow of runs was too high that his One Day average got above 45 at a time (45.54), and he is still staying at 41 which shows how great a player he used to be.
The only thing our captain wants now is a certain amount of time to get into the act, and everything may be just fine (I know that all those people who praise Dhoni will one day blame him, just as the case of Agarkar, Parthiv etc)
THE HOT TOPIC
It is the truth that Saurav Ganguly is the hot topic today for all the wrong reasons, but I can remember those days when he was the centre of attraction for everything that was good.
The beautiful cover drives and those huge monster hits that disappeared over the fence for sixes. Lets hope that he gets back to form soon, and above all lets hope for an Indian win today....
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