Ganguly's gangplank - Blues Brothers at Cricinfo

Having successfully rebuilt its one-day side after the trauma of the 2007 world cup and Greg Chappell’s fiendish reign, India has to willy-nilly effect a gradual generational change in the five-day squad as well.

The batting prospects look good. Sehwag and Gambhir seem settled as openers. Rohit Sharma, S Badrinath and Suresh Raina will be contenders for middle-order slots and, to my relief, the irresistible Mohammed Kaif is back in favour. Kaif should never have been outof favour. He was never given a chance to fail, only dumped unceremoniously even after decent innings. In contrast, Yuvraj Singh had his chances but has become India’s leading ODI game-changer rather than Test match mainstay.

With a new foursome – Kaif, Sharma, Badrinath and Raina – at the edge of the Test team, the selectors would need to calibrate the rejuvenation of the middle order. One by one, piece by piece, the brilliant veterans will have to be replaced. This is a special, delicate moment. India’s finest middle-order line-up is about to hand over responsibilities to a successor generation. It calls for enlightened action and sense of dignity from all concerned – the Old Guard, the Young Pretenders and the BCCI officialdom.

Granted Tendulkar will go only when he wants to and granted Laxman will probably be chaperoning the new middle-order, as the youngest and only survivor from the immediate past, for longer than many imagine. Even so, some harsh decisions will be called for. By the time India begins playing the first Test match in New Zealand at the end of March 2009, at least two names in the batting list should be playing for the future, not batting from memory.

Postscript: Ganguly’s far from done. It’s become a bit of a cliché to suggest that former cricketers or even outgoing cricketers have a lot to contribute but, often enough, it is difficult to find precise roles. Ganguly’s reputation as a fair-minded risk-taker, the rare Indian captain who was not just articulate but non-parochial too, makes him a shoo-in for the chief selector’s job.

Using the special powers now given to him to, essentially, appoint anybody he wants as selector, the BCCI president should fast-track Ganguly, as soon his playing days are over, into the job. He’s too committed to Indian cricket and too unprejudiced a mind to be left writing newspaper columns.

at any point of time, everybody should retire, so too you beloved dada! i am a great fan of you and was named after you by my dad who is a great fan of you! since i am watching you and your performance very closely all these times, i thought you will retire by the end of upcoming Australian Series!

Apart from the 100 and 200 against Pakistan and 87 against South Africa, you never converted your good starts into a big innings! that is the difference between you and sachin or dravid! Again Srilanka series was a disastrous for you and that's why we have been droppped!

Still there is a chance for you to comeback if any of the seniors get injured or perform very badly in the initial test series! But still if you get a chance to play, retire with that match with a stunning match winning knock!

all the best dada! we are missing you any way and will miss you for ever!

love

souravadhitya
coimbatore

Oh dear, that last paragraph isn't going to go down well with many, I certainly don't agree. Its one thing to call Greg Chappell’s reign fiendish but I'm afraid that to then sing Ganguly's praises as unprejudiced and committed to Indian cricket betray your bias.

While most people are content to blame Chappell and Dravid for being loyal to him, they quickly forget the underhand tactics Ganguly used to fracture the team's unity and his attempt to create bad blood between Laxman and the coach.

Yuvraj, Sehwag, Bhajji were all outspoken and then gagged for showing where they stood on the matter while Ganguly was punished by being dropped for a year. We don't need someone with that attitude as chief selector.

Ganguly can be credited for changing the mindset of the Indian team, but just as his (in)ability to handle deliveries targeting his rib cage he will always be unable to shake off allegations of how far he went to prevent being stripped and dropped for being arrogant and lazy.

i would ask a question to BCCI, tO The so called selectors, and to the critics of The Ganguly that where u hide when evry time Ganguly comes back in Royal style and contribute a valuable partnership. Why this discrimination happens only on Ganguly, u can see series of failures for Sachin, Dravid but selectors just close their eye and wait for a good knock from Sachin and Rahulbut why they dont wait for ganguly to give a good knock.But I am pretty sure that this distingguish bengal tiger would again rise to the expectation of millions with his iron rod determination and take the challange to the rivals.
subroto paul, delhi

It is true that Saurav Ganguly's form in the recently concluded Sri Lanka series was not upto the mark, yet such kinds of forms afflicts top class cricketers at any point of time. However, Indian cricket would be poorer to ignore a cricketer of Ganguly's calibre when they are going to face opponents who are as tough as the Aussies.

Playing against Australia require mental toughness more than anything else. India's resurgence as a tough cricketing nation had happened only under Ganguly's captaincy. It is only due to his exceptional leadership that India posted some its finest wins overseas against teams like Australia, England, West Indies and Pakistan.

I hope, BCCI's think tank haven't forgotten those results. I personally feel, India would definitely miss out a talented player like Ganguly against the strong Aussies if at all they ignore him for the series.

Ganguly came to the cricketing stage for his own calibre, stayed on for his performance and will leave the team respectfully.

I too am a self confessed converted fan of Ganguly, who was undoubtedly one of India's finest captains, the best left handed batsman India has ever produced and a important cog of the batting wheel for a dozen years, and what about those magical little spells of bowling till the turn of the millenium.

But all good things come to an end. It is an endless debate whether he should have been the one to be dropped first. But 2 things that go in Tendulkar and Dravid's favour is their fielding.

Dravid in the slips is still one of the best in business and Tendulkar has again resumed his post behind the wicket. Ganguly was never a slip fielder and therefore gives a sore eye with his slothness in the outfield.

Further Tendulkar and Dravid are the conventional test match batsmen which Ganguly never was. His was all about free spirit and velvet touch on the off-side. Most importantly, except for the great SMG no Indian has ever retired at or near his prime and Ganguly I suspect isn't an exception

Furthermore, Sachin will never be dropped especially now that the Bombay lobby rules the roost. Most likely the next on the block is Dravid, the wall which is developing serious cracks.

The funny thing is that no-one - and I dare say that includes Tendulkar - had captured the imagination of the nation like Ganguly between 2000 & 2006, including his detractors. His contribution to Indian cricket need no repeating.

The ideal scenario would be for him to tell the nation and the selectors that the ensuing Australia series will be his last series and that he is ready for one last scrap against the World Champions. Then he scores a match winning 80 odd (for he was never a century man another reason why he is the first one on the chopping block) in the last test and walks into the sunset.

Ah...if wishes were horses!

The recently concluded Srilanka series had more effects on the Indian cricket than just the series loss. It has brought an end to the long & eventful career of Sourav Ganguly. This stylish lefthanded pro was instrumental in many overseas series win of India, particularly the one in Australia, under his leadership.

The Indian selectors (who are a useless bunch of politicians & non performers) were trying extremely hard to settle scores with Dada, who apparently had to bow down in front of this idiots.

They ensured that talented cricketer like Sourav is replaced with a handful of youth's who could fill the void.
They have just forgotten that it is not only youth charisma that can win matches for India but a combination of experience should be there to handle firceful attack of Nathan, Lee & Johnson.

Guy's let us all pray that never again player's like Sourav are treated badly. All superstars of Indian cricket deserve respect and a grand farewell to their cricketing career.

sourav adhitya has summarized the situation pretty well.
Steve Waugh when he retired did not do badly at all. Infact his last innings was pretty much a match saving innings. Did you hear any clamour in Australia that he was forced to retire sooner.
Many are questioning that ganguly has been dropped after just one bad series. So, what do you feel has to be done? allow him to fail for a few series before being dropped? common guys... we need to move away from the current lot at some point in time.. you have to start with dropping someone and it happens to be saurav. Of the Fab four, people with cricketing sense would agree that it has to be saurav who has to be dropped if a change has to begin with the indian middle order.

Just wait folks the Australians r comming and they will have a great time.
I am not saying that Dada would have made much of a difference with his present form but I think still its just STUPIDITY to comepare a GREAT player like him with the YOUNG BRIGADE.

I do wish all the Best to ALL MAHI. Chamcha's incliding the BCCI!!!

I realy think there is a pact between the present captain and the BCCI not to INCLUDE GANGULY. even if it means to loose the important series

every magical spell has an end...each of us must agree that dada is not at his prime now...so instead of making comparisions with others he must take it to his stride and do a voluntary sign-off from the game..instead of getting played in the hands of so-called selectors..dada time is ripe and we want our hero to quit with the same grace and valour in which he lead the team to famous wins....tiger is always a tiger..and if he's not getting the same attention and respect from ppl around then he must say good bye..

Sourav as selector is the last thing that I would like to see. I am confident he would also not cherish it. I dont think he would be actively involved in Indian Cricket because with the present lot of people around he will never join the band wagon. The cricket board has treated Sourav very badly in the recent years.He has always being on the test from his early playing days. His first test was alo a test when he was sent before Azhar so that if he fails he would be permanently chucked off. From then on wards all his odis or tests were a test for him. There is not a single player who has suffered this lot. he is always the first to be attacked, sacked dropped etc. Every time he has come out victorious.He was never region biased as his predecessor.

I believe that where the BCCI is making huge improvements in their selecting process, they are also making big blunders. First of all the Fab Four still have a good year left in them and that includes Ganguly. His form from when he came back in South Africa to the recent Sri Lanka series has only diminished a couple of times. Two bad innings in Australia and six bad innings in Sri Lanka and the curtain falls on one of the greatest performers of the Golden Era of Indian Cricket. Considering the fact that the pressure Ganguly and Laxman face at no. 5 and no. 6 it is quite easily understandable the fall of the Fab four. Dravid and Ganguly, who seem to be the scapegoats of our failure in Sri Lanka are no strangers to pressure but it is important to note that they had played important innings over the past year or so. Dravid's gritty 30's and 40's have allowed some relief for the Indian order and Ganguly's struggle in the middle also has allowed to India to climb back into the games

Specially the innings in Kanpurv(for Ganguly) and the innings in Perth (for Dravid). We should also take into consider that in the last series we had probably one of the most dangerous pair attacking our batting order. Murali and Mendis have really rocked the boats of many batting orders and the Indian order failing to this pair is no surprise. In fact come to look at it, the innings of the Fab Four have really started to come together in the past few years, where all have contributed to overseas victories. Another point that I want to bring out is that Kaif, Raina, Badrinath and Sharama are not yet ready to face the challenges of test cricket and the best solution to the problem at hand would be to use a rotational policy and let the Fab Four fade out in their own times. Let us not forget it has been this same four batsman who have earned India's reputation as second to Australia. Rather than criticing their mistakes we should applaud their contribution to Indian cricket.

Sourav as a selector? Let us not even go there. To blame Greg Chappell for everything is cheap. Why not you give credit to him for introducing all the youngsters? Did that not help us to win the T20 WC? We again won the one-day series in Australia with a bunch of youngsters.

In 2005, Ganguly was at the point of a career where he needed a reality check. Dropping him at that time was the right thing to do. Credit to him for coming back and doing well.

Just stop for a minute and think…Over 12 years, Ganguly’s average is just 41 while every top batsmen averages above 50. Ganguly as test batsman is easily replaceable. Second, he has consistently failed against Australia. It is better to try someone else.

This is not at all correct on the part of selectors to drop him alone as all the members of the fab four failed together why only blame him there is always been a history with the former capatins being sidelined sanath jaysuriya maravan atapattu steve waugh inzamam ul haq etc etc as soon as you get axed as a captain of the team you also tend to get droped from the side all these above mentioned great players have gone through the same and gangully is no exception but the way he made his comeback, all his critics had to shut thier mouth but now since he is going through a lean patch every single innings he is playing is being highlighted which is not fair media does it for storeis but why his critics i think doing this why is he getting this treatment which he does not deserve at all i would only say that look at the team he is given us viru,dhoni was his discovery,yuvraj,kaif,bhajji,zaheer and many more he says he is got 2 yrs and i am sure he will prove it dont count him out guys ...

I fail to understand why we need to treat cricketers like chewing gum – keep chewing away till there is no trace of sweetness left.

Look at the Aussie greats like McGrath and Warne. It is a mark of a true champion to end on a high – not only have they satisfied their supporters, but they have also are at peace with themselves. They were great players, but also generous enough to step aside when the time came for the next generation to grow and prosper.

I am glad the selectors have adopted a pro-youth policy and are looking towards the future. For far too long have we had to tolerate massive egos that are more interested in achieving their own personal milestones rather than what is good for Indian cricket.

There is no doubt that Ganguly has been one of the best players and captains that India has ever had – it would have been so fitting for him to have lifted the 2003 World Cup (if only we had won it): it would have been THE defining image of the Golden Age of Indian batting.

.. cont

However his (and others’) time has come and his legacy deserves the class of walking out rather than being pushed out.

That said, the suggestion about him being a selector does sound good – he has an eye for talent: he backed Yuvraj and Bhajji when no one did. But Anjo does raise valid points – the Chappell debacle proved that Ganguly let power get to his head and this led to his ruin. While he has fought his way back since then, he has given no indication that he was sorry for what he did, or indeed that he was wrong in the first place. Ganguly needs to grow up and leave his ego behind; otherwise he is more likely to indulge in power-play than make objective decisions.

Ganguly, do all of us a favour, please retire! why Indian cricketer do not learn from Australian? look at Steve Waugh, Gillcrist, Mcgrath, Mark Waugh to name a few. They all have retired at their peak with heads held high. But I guess it is for the money that Indian don't follow the suit. Everybody has to go one day, why it is so hard for them to accept it. Ganguly, Dravid, Laxman and Sachin has to go now they are 36+, to make room for Rohit, Raina, and Badrinath's. If they do not understand this simmple fact they should be kicked out, yes knowing how well they have served India in the last 10 years. It is simple either you retire or you would be left out.

I think some extent Ashok is correct...Ganguly well past his prime and age...there is no point hanging around for nothing further and dropping Gangs from the team was right from all fronts....lets look at ariel view, Sachin is a one of the all time greats who can easily turn the things on his own, Dravid the wall seems he is into his usal form with the last innings. VVS Laxman, the man for the crisis seasons who bats now at no.6,and still averages very healthy. I think VVS could be a bridge between the old fashioned test cricketers and the new generation,so I think he will stay on for sometime even after Dravind and Sachin to some extent. If selecters had to introduce a youngster into test areana to start the transition,the best thing is to drop Ganguly, as he is moderate test player (nobody denying that he was good skipper) and against AUS he is poor. Kaif is matured and good fielder well fit into no.6 slot, whick makes VVS to come at no.5,I believe with ROI squad we may go on get it.

Guys get real.
None of the 4 is getting any younger / sharper.
They might have a lot more to contribute, but probably not on the field of play. Between 4 of them, they could not control a newcoming spinner across an entire test series.
The logical plan going forward for the next 2 / 3 series should be 3 of the big 4 play with a new-comer. Then, 2 of the big 4.....
Of course which 1 / 2 get dropped should be decided on the day of play allowing the captain to go with the right horses for courses.

UNPREJUDICED - HIM .... Please. That last comment itself shows the bias of this article. Chappell wasn't fiendish in his reign, he was simply trying to instill a new psyche into the Indian cricketers mind, ie playing for the team. Perhasp we weren't ready for it. And this concept of some players will go when they want ...... I wonder when we'll ever get out of that hang-up. Ganguly - unprejudiced? Forget it - he'd do anything to hang on in the Indian team. Come to think of it didn't he already do that ......

Ofcourse, we are forgetting another old horse who has consistently failed to live upto expectations. He is none other than Anil Kumble. Make that Fab 5 guys. I can't believe we are a country with spinning legends and spinners pitches, which prove to be a graveyard for batsmen, when I look at Kumble and Harbhajan bowling together INEFFECTIVELY. I think it is time Kumble for to retire as well. When would we groom youngster otherwise? If past laurels are a ticket to the Indian team then why not get those poor (legends of Indian cricket) guys who performed equal to or better than the Fab 5 and who could not make 10% of what the Fab 5 made and are still making?

Ahem - lets get real. I agree with Anjo "Ganguly can be credited for changing the mindset of the Indian team"

People talk of Aus 2004 as a great triumph - that was an Aussie bowling side without McGrath and Warne, a Brett Lee returning from Injury - that's an Aussie attack running at 30-40%. We all saw how the windies challenged them this year too - so I don;t see much into the 2004 win.

Windies in 2001 - we could not win a series against a side which had Mervin Dillon as "spearhead". There was plenty of theatre from Ganguly though.

Ganguly never had Madan Lal or Kapil Dev as "coach".

And he got the best years of Dravid and VVS.

And he knows his grammar and is articulate.

So, apart from changing the mindset (which btw gave us also the behaviour of Bhajji and Sreesanth as a byproduct), I don;t see much.

Yeah - the guy has actually been catalytic with his batting performances since returning - but lets not call him finest captain and all that.

i think what's really sad about the indian cricket scene is that the board at no point tells players what would be their last series. i think, personal favorites aside, all indian cricketers deserve a graceful exit from the playing eleven, and it is a shame that even such basic professional dignity is not extended to India's best. the current policy appears to be- drop them, ignore them, and at some point, they'll stop hoping and trying, and one day, they'll go away. Shame on BCCI!

To one of the morons above, Raj probably, who pretend to sound smart by pointing out Ganguly's Test avge to conclude that he was never quite required in the team: so do you think the same of Viswanath and Vengsarkar as they have very similar averages like Ganguly? By your inane logic then Kumble is not a great bowler either, because all the other contemporary greats have a bowling avge. of at least below 25. By the same token, Ganguly's average in ODIs is a lot better than that of your Rainas and Kaifs and Sharmas, that too over a much longer period of time. Care to explain his absence from the ODI team? Things don't work in binaries. You need to use that roundish thing above your neck for more than just a hat rack. On a different note, the influx of the painful mediocrity of the Dhoni-sycophants in the Test team will complete the diabolical circle of Pawar's regime in the BCCI, unless he has a few more dirty tricks up his sleeve.

poor politics once again started to show its head. most ridiculous decision taken by selector.do u think he doesnt deserve even to play for irani?

since his comeback he performed at his best he made his contribution in the victory.a man at the age of 34 made 200 that too his maiden double ton look this man passion towards cricket..he was the top run getter in both form since his come back. jus a failure in one series and knife is on the head of sourav.

i accept the fact that his body wont suit for odi so it doesn make irate for his fans.in sl series every one failed y its for dada oly y selectors are hesitating to remove the other 2(sachin,)dravid)its pathetic.

if u r not interested to pick hi,m in team atleast u can give him a good bid of farewell and say thanks man for your wonderfull contribution we certaily wan dada to play one test series in future. its all in the hands of new selector lets all pray and hopr for the best

The wall has crumbled (lets face the bitter truth) and dada - ur hay days are a blast of the past, really. Off you go - Dravid and Ganguly, please come in Kaif (u're warned this is your very final chance!) and (possibly) the future wall (albiet opposite facing) raina (u got to rain the runs and end the lankan drought, a taller ask than ur batting heights so far. will keep an eye on u too!) Rohit can wait till Sachin decides to call it quits (I would say another two years, his injuries allowing) but Badrinath, my heart goes out to you, hard luck, mate - too little too late. U're the best middle order bat India never had. Can't afford you when Laxman has yet to go lax.

To the not so smart and angry ROyyyy, first Vishy and Vensarkar played at a time without Bangladesh and Zim. Second, they played in a different era. Let us compare Ganguly to the batsmen of current era. Last, I never talked about one-days. Finally, are you not the guys who cried when Ganguly was dropped from T20 and one-day teams? Thank God Ganguly and some seniors were dropped. We won the T20 cup and we won a major series in Australia. Cricket is much bigger than individuals that include Sachin, Ganguly and Dravid. Time to move on without Ganguly. Btw, are you angry that Pawer’s dirty tricks are better than your Dalmiya’s dirty tricks?

I agree. Ganguly was great when he made a come back. Now, he got settled into the team and started relaxing again. I beleive, Ganguly and Dravid should be dropped. These are chances that a team should boldly take. They might make me wrong and score centuries if they get selected. But, judging by what has happened in the recent two series and the past experiences, Ganguly and Dravid should go. I am sure, selectors will not drop Dravid because he scored an half century in his last innings. He will fail in the two innings in the first test and the captain will say he should be give the entire series. Then he will grind a century in the second test and fail again in the rest of the series. This is going on for a whille. Kaif can fill Dravid's spot. Maybe we need a hard hitting batsman at 6. Could be Yuvraj, despite all his failures. He is too good a player to be discarded. Badrinath is a good player. But, is he better than Kaif? Rohit sharma is a disappoining performer. Maybe Raina at 6.

@ Moronic Raj: Yeah Vengsarkar sure had the fearsome NZ bowling to face. It's not Ganguly's fault that ZIM and Bang gained test-status. But if you used your hat rack that you call your head you would notice that Sachin and Dravid piled more runs than anybody else against those two. Doesn't make them any less than greats! Ganguly was only recently named the Asian Cricketer of the World, and mind you, there was no "Dalmiya's tricks" involved there. Again, it was solely due to Tendulkar's efforts in the Finals that now myopic fools like you are getting a chance to chirp about the series victory in Australia. All I am saying is give a great servant of Indian cricket his due and do not decry his efforts and achievements just because he is getting on with years. Your unnecessary allusion to Dalmiya points that you are one of those self-destructive ignoramuses rampant with provincial feelings. Get out of your dingy pigeon hole and smell the coffee. People like you are a bane to this country.

@moronic Raj contd. Vengsarkar and Vishy may have played in a different era, but the greatest players from that era, or any eras for that matter, have had averages over 50, e.g. SMG, Viv, G.Chappell, Sobers, Miandad etc. However, Vishy caught cricket-lovers' imagination just as some of those names did. Averages don't tell you the whole story. As I said, if it did then Ganguly should be in the ODIs till he wanted to call it quits. Indeed you didn't mention anything about ODIs in the first post, but your observation based on numbers was essentially flawed. Short-sighted, impulsive and vengefully provincial as you seem, you should think twice before going cock-a-hoop about the new brigade. Though many have been tried, India didn't get a quality Test player since Sehwag. You should do well to keep that in mind since you proclaim to talk only about tests, though I see you conveniently forgetting that from time to time in your puerile second post. Anything to undermine Ganguly's efforts, eh?

The angry (and I will not use an offensive terms like you do!!!) Royy…obviously when you are angry and using offensive terms you cannot think properly!!!! Yes, I agree NZ bowlers like Hadlee and Morrison were worse than B’desh bowlers. Without B’desh and Zim, Ganguly’s average would fall below 40. Sachin and Dravid – performed creditably against other countries too.

I have no issues with Ganguly or anyone winning the best player award….I also credited ganguly’s good come back in my first message. Yes, SRT played a vital role in finals…,no doubt about that…but why do you want to ignore who took India to finals? Let us also not forget that we won two other major tournaments without Sachin Tendulkar and you safely ignore that as well.

Only change is permanent. Time to move on. India will get a quality player when batsmen are given chances. Other than that all your abuses calling me this and that stand no ground. I believe that a team is more important than an individual

@angry Roy Contd…Since you talked about those eras…let me tell you something. Only great players in the past had an average of 50+. Currently, many more batsmen average more runs per inning (including 50+ averages) due to many factors.

In the current era, Ganguly’s average of 41 is very poor in comparison with the past eras. Average not telling the whole story is an excuse. An average does tell you some story if not the whole story.

Until last year, Ganguly averaged a mere 30 against Pak, Aus, WI and SA. He still averages 30 against WI and Aus. Only his recent good scores against Pak and SA upped his average against those teams.

All the four teams had good fast bowlers and Ganguly simply did not score runs against them due to lack of technique or as you may want to call it…it was just a coincidence!!!!!

Average does tell stories (especially average in 109 tests)…..probably you should read the book Money Ball!!!! .

Nah, I was wrong. Indeed Ganguly free-rode the Indian team, thanks to "Dalmiya's tricks" pointed out by you. Wasim Akram's confession on TV about Ganguly being the hardest bowler to bowl to after the 1999-2000 C&U series in Australia was probably the aftermath of chewing too much weed. His centuries in England and Australia were mere eyewash. The fact that he scored higher than some of your 'creditable' performers in the recently concluded Ind-SA series under tough situations against quality pace is a chimera. Anybody, anywhere praising his efforts at any time subscribed to hogwash. Indeed, his technique is worse than your Rainas and Kaifs and thank God that the ever-destructive Danny Morrison didn't swallow him up already! If you were not so caught up in smearing Ganguly in black, you'd notice that I didn't claim him to be the most technically sound player in the world. He had his flaws but he worked on rectifying them as good as he could.

@ Raj contd. However, it is a fallacy to assume that he was replaceable at any point of his test career. He may not have been a Dravid or Kallis in technique, but he was the best that India could afford to have at number 5 during his tenure. One cannot name a single more deserving player not getting the nod ahead of him. Or probably you'd come up with absurd names like Ajay Jadeja, Yuvraj Singh, Kaif and so on. No one disagrees with bringing young blood in the team, but there must be a proper manner. India simply doesn't have the talent pool to bring in new players at test level who would succeed. Good players do not need an eternity to prove his mettle - Ganguly didn't, neither did Dravid or Sehwag. Your Kaifs and Yuvrajs got enough chances only to throw them away because, swallow the bitter truth, they are simply not good enough at the test match level. I don't understand why is it so hard for provincial-sceptics like you to give Ganguly his due.

the envitable end of a prolonged career has finally struck & struck @ the right time.There is no way he should be granted place in the team.This shud have been done 2 years back,he didnt contributed much during the last 2 years ,itis the right time to bid adieu to him.
By this,it sends the warning to the others who doesnt contribute much & thus gave a series of hope to the yongsters who r knockin the door.His omission can give a place to the young one ,who can then have a chance to cement his place & if he scores against best teams(which india is supposed to play in the entire season)will might give a good batsman.
Ofcourse we cant ignore his contribution ,atleast he deserves a good valediction.But,it is right that he now has to hang his international boots.

Ganguly is a fantastic cricketer with true spirit of the game. He was the most successful captain as well. But it is all history. May be it is time to do a reality check folks! I am a fan of his, but that doesnt mean that we should keep him in the team just for the memory of his past performances.

If we want to introduce youngsters to the team, the seniors should leave one by one, sorry for ganguly being the first one. Next is definitely Dravid. Sachin, being an icon player, will be in the team till her retires. I think he will retire once he reaches the top spot of the most run scored batsman of test cricket.

I wish all the best for mahi and his team for the coming tour. Even if you keep sourav in the team, think for how long? Once a player is unable to deliver the best, he should be rested. NO PLAYER IS BIGGER THAN THE TEAM OR THE COUNTRY. WE CAN'T TAKE RISK TO SATISFY INDIVIDUAL PREFERENCES. His removal from the team was always coming. His lack of form just speeded it up, thats all.