Chappell could have, like many of us who are frustrated by the system, reconciled himself to working within its limitations. But he decided to shake it up. That Ganguly’s time was up as captain was plain to see, but without Chappell acting as precipitator, the status quo would have been maintained: Ganguly’s Test hundred against Zimbabwe would have been enough to keep him in the seat. Chappell had a bit of luck because the circumstances – the uncertainty and the power struggle within the BCCI – worked to his advantage. But courage, you could say, begets luck.

Let’s not be fooled by India’s success against Sri Lanka though. Sri Lanka’s number two status was a bit of a lie because it was built on their mastery over home conditions. The most encouraging sign from the recent performance of the Indian team, however, is the wholehearted manner in which the whole team has bought in to the vision and ethics espoused by the coach and captain. Ajit Agarkar made a pertinent observation in an interview a few days ago. Asked about the difference between the Ganguly-Wright and Dravid-Chappell regimes, he said, “When the team is winning, we tend to overlook certain aspects and under Sourav we were winning a lot.”

Perhaps for the first time in the history of Indian cricket, there is a coach-captain team that’s united not only by the goal, but also in perfect sync about the path to that goal. There are tougher challenges ahead, both at home and abroad, and with every loss, the methods Chappell and Dravid have adopted will be under scrutiny. How much they will be allowed to stick to the processes they have unleashed, will depend, unfortunately, on the political equations with the board – if not entirely, certainly to a large extent.

It is with concern that we read about the BCCI president predicting with an air of certainty that Ganguly will be back. The concern isn’t about Ganguly’s return, for he still might have something to offer the Indian team if he is willing to buy into the “process”, but that the board president, who should have no role whatsoever in team selection, should think it fit to make such a statement. Who knows what’s cooking?

Ashok Malik will make his post on Saturday November 19, afternoon India time.

Agree with Sambit. Chappell did act as precipitator, and that definitely has helped in the short term. But with the BCCI President's recent statement, and Cricinfo's own report indicating that three out of five selectors are in favour of reinstating Ganguly as captain for the tests, there's going to be more theatre going forward. If Ganguly is reinstated as test captain after he was deemed not good enough to be in the side before the SA series, it's going to send very bad signals to the younger players. It will be telling them that who you know matters more than what you do, and Indian cricket will go back to lethargy and complacency. This is before we speak of what it might do to the motivation levels of Dravid, who is our most valuable player at the moment.

wicketmaiden.blogspot.com

If the Board President as you say Sambit has no role as such, then how in the first place did Chapell have a role?
He was absolutely no right in asking the team to step down or pit players against one another like in the case of Harbhajan.
Quoting your own post:"When the team is winning a lot, you tend to overlook certain aspects". You seem to be reading such a lot in just one win that too in your own words against a team so largely overrated? C'mon Sambit, your bias is more than obvious.
A team that was next only to the Aussies a year back can not become a bad team in no time. If you ask me, the team that losplayed SA a couple of days back is the same team that Saurav had minus Saurav and Zaheer.
The only external influence in the last one year that upset the apple cart has been the induction of a man who answers to the name of G. Chapell.
Professional journalism calls for an unbiased view. Please put things in perspective and stop the anti-Saurav lobby that is very much visible on your site.
To quote Sidhu'One swallow does not make a summer'. 2007 is a long way and it would be intresting to see who has the last laugh

I think, Sourav's recent form and efforts in the practice sessions made Greg crossed a bit. Greg thought Sourav doesn't have anything to serve Indian cricket any more. In a certain TV channell a video footage was showing Ganguly in Indian team's practice. Greg and Ian Frazer were giving catches, together. Greg was offering simple dollis whwreas Ian Frazer was hitting it very hard. After sometime, Ganguly just lied on ground and was trying to take those dollis lying on the ground, as if he was trying to get off Ian's firing line. Because there was no need to dive for a catch that Greg was offering. When that little session was off, Ganguly was looking very nervous and perhaps was trying to convince someone with a smile. But from his face it could be easily read that he was concious of the fact that he could not come to the terms.
We should also dig a little deep to analyse Sourav's success (as a captain). There is no doubt that he has brought many things to Indian cricket. But was he a really 'great' captain? Did India really play like a team? Did all the players use to contribute in his team? Can anyone remind me of a test match in which Dravid failed in both innings and India still won or drew the game?

A Coach/Captain strategy are good or Bad cannot be decided on a single series...Winning is a habit and is far beyond complacency,international stature,process. Team should look hungry in every Game irrespective of the results.
A Century in a match ,often makes a batsmen complacent enough to loose his form in the next couple of matches , (not true for some youngsters ..Dhoni the hero for a while )
Alarm Rings when the position is endangered by competition.
Only Talent can never take a team to the pinnacle of world criket its more to it...So wait and watch...it will take time to change the mentallity of Indian Cricketers :)

Agree with Sambit. Chappell did act as precipitator, and that definitely has helped in the short term. But what i fail to understand is this reluctance to get Ganguly back into the team even after proving his fitness and form. The selectors went ahead and selected Kaif stating that his record was so good that he had to be selected for the ODI's against Sri Lanka and South Africa. I am sure going by that statement Ganguly deserves a place in the team ahead of many of the boys in the team, because only three other players in the international career have scored more runs than him in the ODI format. Also considering the fact that the nucleus of the present team was introduced by the Ganguly - Wright combine, giving cedit to Chappel does not make any sense (the notable differences in the team being RP Singh). I do not understand this animosity towards the most successful captain of India. An individual who stood up for his players and made sure that they got a fair deal from the selectors and the board. I do not agree with Aniruddh Gupta when he says that the Indian team will go back to lethargy and complacency, i would like to remind him that it was this same team (sans RP Singh) led by Ganguly that reached the World Cup finals, drew a series with Austrlaia in Australia and beat Pakistan in Pakistan. And if the indian team can go back into lethargy and complacency because of a selection of a particular person then the team needs many more classes on professionalism. Ganguly will be brought back into the team on the merit of his performances and not because of who he knows, but the criterion for selection should be similar for all players.

Whether Ganguly deserves a place in the team is a question that the entire nation stands divided on. Despite what all of us and the media might think the only opinions that matter belong to the five wise men. In fact no one else's should really matter. Not even the board president's. It is indeed disturbing that a board president can make prophecies on team selection with an air of certainty that can only be described as alarming. The board president is openly encroaching on roles he has no business being involved with.

The problem will continue as long as the administration of the sport in the country is in the hands of people who are honorary. In many ways the state of cricket mirrors the state of the country. Flashes of brilliance born, accidentally/serendepitously, out of chaos. Unfortunately.

It is all known about Ganguly's success as a batsman and a captain. However, he has failed on both the fronts too much and too often lately. There needs to be measuring yardsticks for any performance and I guess Ganguly does not make a cut as a batsmen in either forms of the game. Scoring runs in domestic cricket and against opposition like Zimbabwe and then having the audacity to brag about those is really a sign of desperation. The likes of Dravid, Shewag and Sachin have all played vital roles in making Ganguly a great captain. I think Sambit made the point clear, when he said that unlike most of us that find a way to live in an uneasy peace with a faulty system, Chappell has shown he is a man of convinction. And the way he took this whole issue heads on, also tells the amount of confidence he has in himself to bring a change for the better. I am sure he must know that if he fails to deliver, it will be ganguly in and himself out...But who is this Mahendra to talk about who gets to play or not? I think someone in India must file some kind of an litigation against him to keep him quiet. Such viruses tend to spread faster, given the swamp called political intereference in sports in India.

I think we are jumping to conclusions to fast. SriLankas were hardly an opponent this time around. Dravid-Chappel combo has worked only for 6 matches. Perhaps we should observe the results for a bit longer, and more importantly the performance of the team outside the subcontinent. Once upon a time Ganguly-Wright combo was working too, we afterall defeated Waugh's Aus.
I agree that the team is showing lot of character and at this point everything seems to be working but it doesnt take much time to get the things on wrong track.

Sambit Bal has really become very predictable. There is absolutely no possibility that he would write anything that remotely might be laudatory of Ganguly. On the other hand in his expert opinion, "Perhaps for the first time in the history of Indian cricket, there is a coach-captain team that’s united not only by the goal, but also in perfect sync about the path to that goal."

This is, frankly, an amazingly illogical statement, especially coming from a person who is on the staff of Cricinfo, and who is expected to be more objective than most about the game. How does he know that Chappell and Dravid are in "perfect synch"? And more importantly, how is this "the first time in Indian cricket"? Have we alreadt consigned the Wright-Ganguly to the dustbin of history. Or were they a flash-in-the-pan?

Perhaps the most interesting development in the last 3-4 months has been the inevitable and inexorable exposure of the journalists and commentators like Sambit Bal and Ravi Shastri. All their biases, prejudices, and inclinations are out in the open. That has caused many readers and listeners to take these "pundits" of sport a little less seriously, no matter which side they are on. And that is a probably good thing too. We know whom to trust now.

Saurav deserves another chance & has to be picked in the Test Team as a captain.
I think he will prove himself rightway.He has scored so many runs and is a very talented player.Also, he is the most successful captain we have had.All the changes being done with the ODI Team are good for us and i feel Greg has got the things right.We might lose against SA,but still our direction is right and will help in the longer run.But all this can be achieved even with Saurav in the Team (Only as a player)too.As for Greg complaining about his not following fitness regime,he must understand Saurav is over 30 and u cant make him do rounds as this thingsneeds to be incorporated when young and cant be introduced at the age of 30(I think Saurav wont have any problems working out at nets for hours together on his batting).Saurav has a very good record and no one can deny it.I know you should not rely much on past statistics but he needs to have a chance in ODI without captainship, who knows we might see the old flair of his (with which he played before taking on captainship)back!!Can u imagine he still has an average of over 40 with 3-4 years of bad run!( acc. to his critics).And one last thing,Hayden was weak against short-pitched stuff too but Buchanan made him face plastic balls thrown at his body and LooK! I had expected the same from Greg.Hope it turns out well for both of them.

Hmm agree with Sambit to a very large extent. However, with reference to Sourav Ganguly I also have to partly agree with Sri when he says that our cricinfo was a bit harsh on Ganguly even after he had regained composure and stopped making incensing statements. However it is necessary for Ganguly admirers (for the record, I am one) to see that:
a) His glorious career as player and unforgettable service to India as captain are issues that are not to be related to his recent form in both forms of cricket. Comments about each should be made and judged independently.
b) Not all criticism of Ganguly necessarily ends in support of the theory that his career is over.

I personally think he should depart gracefully. I jumped the gun and wrote a piece on this icon almost 2 months ago: http://ganguly_chappell.rediffblogs.com

I do not at all agree with Sambit. I think Ganguly still has the leadership qualities, and still possess his batting skills. This was very much evident, in the just finished Duleep Trophy. He took a comparatively lesser team like East Zone to the finals of the Duleep Trophy. East Zone has never won the Trophy, and it came in the finals after 45 years. Ganguly not only backed his skills, of converting an ordinary bunch of cricketers to an extraordinary winning outfit, like he did with TEAM INDIA, when he took over in 2000,when Indian cricket was in shambles following the betting controversy, and after Australia inflicted a clean sweep in the 3 match series down under, under Sachin. Ganguly possess this skill, of making a player perform much more than his ordinary potential. He also led from the front, by scoring 117 in only 140 balls, and also he took 14/15 important wickets,
in the Duleep Trophy.
He led East Zone to 2 emphatic victories against top team North Zone and Zimbawe X1, before losing a close match to West Zone in the final.

People say, ganguly is only great, when he plays against lesser teams like Bangladesh, Zimbawe, Namibia, Kenya, I do not agree with that.
I just checked his stats against South Africa, he has the best batting record amongst Indians, even putting Sachin's record to a distant second. He also won
more man of the mathches against South Africa, than Sachin, who played almost double more matches, than him.
Now,is South Africa a lesser team also?

To the moderator - some comments here are defintiely ad hominem

To those who are saying that the post trashes Ganguly - please read carefully. Samit Bal says that Ganguly maybe has a lot to contribute, provided he can buy into the new process. If the captain of the team does not agree with the coach as to how the team is going to be trained etc, the probability of the team performing well decreases. World Cup 2003, Pakistan and Australia were almost two years ago. Are we going to keep basking in past glories, or are we going to move forward? Because the competition has moved forward...

wicketmaiden.blogspot.com

I agree totally with Sambit. What Chappel, with a bit of luck, began was what we call in management as Organisation Development. Just like any learning that requires unlearning and cleaning up, any devlopment also requires an unfreezing of the system before we move and settle and freeze another approach. We Indians are predominantly cynical when somebody tryout a new thing. "Ganguly" has not been a new thing.Let us not live in the past and on his glorious records.That is the thing of the past. Let us give the coach credits that are due and let him take us to better status in cricket.

Whatever the opinion of someone with regards to the character of Ganguly one thing can be said with certainty, he has not performed either as a batsman or as a captain in recent years. Hundreds against Bangladesh or Zimbabwe in this day and age only serve to highlight further failings against quality opposition. If this Indian team seeks to challenge Australia for dominance of world cricket it will need performances and not personalities. I am neither for nor against Ganguly as a man, I do believe however that like many Australian and other players in the past he has reached a point where being dropped is not only the best thing for the national team, but also possibly for his own game if he looks for form in provincial competition. Ganguly was once a prince among the worlds batsmen, and he deserves his place in history. Dishonouring that place by playing on past usefulness through selection politics puts a severe dent on the mans legacy, not to mention his batting average, remembering that many peoples averages these days are looked at as two figures, one including the minnows, and the more telling one which does not.

Unfortunately, the reason behind being Ganguly left out of the team has nothing to do with cricket.
Neither would have Ganguly lost is captaincy nor his place in the team if he had not given that fateful interview during the Zimbabwe tour. Once he did that and Chappel responded with the now (in)famous mail, it just doesnot make sense to have both working in the same environment because things will become worse. Unless Ganguly gives way (and I guess his latest statements are a clever way to do just that and save his face) I see no way by which he can be back. And lets face it--bias or no bias, what he did in Zimbabwe was not done. One can always argue whether what Chappel did was correct or not but a leaked email is not his fault!! To that regard, it is Ganguly who has to decide what he wants. In terms of whether Ganguly can still deliver, its not time yet to conclude that he cannot--he should be brought back and the results after that would provide the answer.
But before that, the prince should have the good sense of getting rid of his idiotic circle of bengali newspaper journalists who are doing him more harm than favour. For once, the guy needs to think what he wants--another shot at getting his career back on track or further slide into oblivion.

Is Ganguly currently one of the top 6 batsmen in India? (either in tests or one days) I dont think so. Therefore he doesn't deserve a place in this team. A player out of form deserves some support, but sadly Ganguly has had his chances. He is currently playing in the domestic circuit and he should not be treated any differently from another domestic batsman. If he performs well enough to displace an incumbent in the national team, then he should be selected. If not, then he just has to keep trying.

This is good selection policy and should have nothing to do with who the manager is. Past records look good on CVs but is practically useless on the pitch.

I don't understand this obsession with records that Saurav followers have - an obsesion much similar to Saurav himself, who never wastes an opportunity to quote this tallies every now and then. As much as his tally of runs is a benchmark of his previous performances, it's dwindling is an indicator of his current performance. When it comes down to a matter of team selection, if the team feels that his expected contribution will be lesser than Kaif's, it makes sense to go with Kaif. Given Saurav's current form, his average hovers more among the mortal regions of 25-30 rather than his past ODI average of 40. When this is the quality of his current batting form, and his even largely magnified problems with pace bowling attacks of late, he doesn't merit an automatic selection into the team. Saurav's not going to be around forever - if for a year from now, he bats like he did for the past 6 months, we can expect an average of 25ish from him. Instead if he use that spot to blood an youngster, he might only give you 25 runs/match for a year but it will certainly prove to be an investment that will pay off if the player goes on to better things. This is an attractive option when we have some good young players vying for spots. And if the drop forces Ganguly to come back better/stronger, great but in his current form, he was a under-performer and his being the captain made him harder to drop, not to mention harder for him to demand performance from others.

As i read about ganguly and mahendra`s comments about a possible comeback from ganguly.it just sinks my heart because india just lost a one dayer to SA and ganguly again has resurfaced with his past records and lame ideeas.i would not mind him in team if he has to offer something with his batting.only thing that concerns me is that if he is not captain then he will make sure that dravid has to face a very uphill task handling whole team togather.who can forget when sachin was captain the way azharudin was behaving and rest of his group.it was very hard for sachin to control procedings.thats why finally sachin quit.so are we ready to give away dravid just to accomodate ganguly?
do think guys do we need someone who has just scored a century against zimbabwe (worst test playing team) or a duleep trophy century followed by couple of ducks and nothing else woth noticing.anyways our sin is we want a better team and i `m afraid maybe we will be punished with ganguly in team.
even if you are fan of ganguly (which i was also couple of sessions back) do you really think he can do something better for india?

Why all this talk about Ganguly? He is a disruptive force in this team. Just because his stats have been shored up with games with Bangladesh, and Zimbabwe. does not make him an automatic selection. I have never had anything against Ganguly, but when he scores two ducks, why the hell are you asking him to be let into the team, and as captain , you must be joking.

Seriously think about it...at least with respect to ODI's, the only way I see Ganguly coming back is in the super sub role as a batsman.

One thing old man Chappell has done is improve the standard of fielding. It's gone through the roof. Can you imagine Ganguly on the field? At best, he moves like a bus rammed in Delhi traffic. His bowling is adequate, but there are better fielding options.

Tonnes of credit for what he's done for Indian cricket...but we need to adopt the Australian model. Ruthless.

No doubt, Ganguly was one of the greatest captian and one day batsman India ever had. But greatness he achived was thru his performance and now he is not performing so we need to see the current form. He got enough time which other would not got, during this time he failed. Now after Rahul Dravid became captian there is a new zeal in the team, lets not disturb this by bringing in Ganguly at this time.
And he no longer getting younger also, so lets invest this time in making some 1 else too great like ganguly.
Hope Dalmiya and co. loss the election for the betterment of Indian cricket

Everything regarding Ganguly is put in a pro or anti Ganguly frame so to start with I will say, I believe that Ganguly .... now after having been dropped, may actually have something to offer to Indian cricket as a batsman.

What worries me is the fact that Mahendra makes such comments and if God forbid the selectors do bring Ganguly back as captain what happens then? I mean what kind of message is it sending to the rest of the players.

Though I think Indian cricket isnt bold or rash enough to do that. I think they will retain/appoint Dravid as captain of the test team and may pick Ganguly as a player.

He may actually have some value as the #6 batsman. I am not convinced that Kaif has what it takes to be a test bat. His approach when he was sent in at #3 was absymal in the last game.

So he comptes with Yuvraj for the #6 slot and its a good tossup on who gets that spot.

By him not being the captain he will have the pressure to actually perform and who knows what he can do without the pressure of captaincy.

Maybe despite everything he does deserve that one chance?

I think Rishi Sood has brought out a very relevant point. I think the most worrisome aspect of Indian cricket is hardly wether Dravid is a good captain/Chappell a good coach, or even wether Ganguly will make a comeback as a player. I think all of these are givens. The most worrisome aspect is the make-up of the BCCI leadership, a set of utterly shameless, unscrupulous, fractious and indeed detestable group of people. To have a world-beating team, it is also important to have an administration that is absolutely committed to the success of the team. Consider, for example, any professional sport in America. No team in its right mind would hire politicians to manage the team. It is amply clear that the top priority of people like Dalmiya, Mahendra, etc is their own political survival and agenda. And the likes of Sharad Pawar want to join the fray! Lets face it. These people are not good cricketers, nor good managers. They must all go. How that is to be accoplished, might be the real problem facing Indian cricket.

I guess i am largely with Sambit on this one. Sure the Saurav/ Wright combine had pushed India to a higher plane than at any other point in time. And as in life, that is what their successors Chappel and Dravid is building on. India should be grateful to Saurav - and then move on. Saurav doesnt have anything more to offer this team. On the contrary his potential to disrupt cannot be overlooked specially after burning his bridges with Chappel. All those pining for his return to the test side would do well to consider that he was a far better one day player than a test player and logically his exclusion is certain. Unless of course Mahendra deems otherwise! Funny isn't it that the guy Saurav described as "the worst he had met in his life" should be so keen to bat for Saurav. Even Saurav doesn't deserve that!!

I donno why this all abt ganguly if u r talking about past performances then even jadeja and robin singh are better choices over ganguly.Bring them on.

ganguly, as you say ,might still have a lot to offer...but it will be in the form of...1>clumsy shots off good quality balling..2>even worst efforts on the field...3>and may be a scratchy and meaningless 50 or100 against some ordinary balling attack once a while.....so please move forward.....through ..chappel and ganguly.

Ganguly has been great for Indian Cricket for so many years. He wil be considered as one of the best( specially in one day Cricket )the game has seen. His present form is such that he should not be in the team. But a player of his calibre deserves a better farewell. Please let him leave in his own terms. One more chance in both form of cricket and take it from there.

I don't think Sambit is biased against Ganguly, only that he's speaking the truth as he sees it. I completely agree with him that the only way is to go forward with Dravid & Chappell. They're doing their best to make the Indian team more professional & they should be left free to do so. Sourav Ganguly was an outstanding player & captain for India, but his time is running out. He cannot and should not be allowed back into the team based on his past record. The past is over, its only use is to fill record books. What matters is how people are performing and have performed in the last 2-3 series. Sourav will have to compete for a spot, on the basis of his PRESENT PLAYING FORM just like everyone else, with Suresh Raina & Venu Gopal Rao. This will be tough because they're young, exciting, fearless and full of potential. But Sourav has shown an appetite for challenges before, let's see what he does with this one. I would love to see him succeed because he's a classy, elegant player, but he has to earn his right to be in the team.
As a fanatic Indian cricket fan I'm extremely glad that Greg Chappell refused to work within the corrupt Indian selection system. I for one am going to get extremely mad if Sourav gets back into the Indian team based on politics. His current playing form, fitness, ability to buy into the increasing professionalism of Indian cricket & contribute to it should be the only criteria for his selection - like they are for the rest of the Indian team & coach. Here's hoping for better days and a series win against SA!

"The six-page email he wrote to BCCI was brutal on Ganguly; more critically, it left Chappell with no escape route. He would have perhaps known that the mail would find its way to the public domain and it would force the board to act. It could have cost him his job."
Well, he might have written the email with just that intent. We still don't know who leaked the email. Why couldn't Chappell have waited for the review meeting ? You think we are naive ? If anyone had to lose it was Sourav. The BCCI won't have the guts to ask Chappell to quit. This statement of yours is hilarious -- "That he put his job on the line in order not to compromise his beliefs was a strong statement about his character." The underarm bowling incident also makes a strong statement about his character. Is cricinfo batting for Chappell ?

Angshuman wrote :
... He also led from the front, by scoring 117 in only 140 balls ...

Do you ignore the double duck he made in the finals ? Zaheer got him in the 1st innings by bowling a few short pitched deliveries at him - and this is on an Indian pitch. Can you image how he would perform in Aus / Eng.

Do u guys remember Azharuddin? Something similar had happened with him. He was not performing as a captain and was dropped from the team. He came so strongly just as a batsman(remember South Africa tour). He had no pressure and played his shots.

I think Ganguly might also play the same way without pressure if he is given a chance as a player only. But the case is a little different as Ganguly is not a good fielder as Azhar was even in his later days.

And yes I think that he can play a good role as a Super Sub but only when the team is chasing as in that case he may not have to field at all.
Another headache for Chappel and Co.

Oh my! How the Sourav supporters are weeping! However the situation was brought about, it is clear that is was necessaryfor Ganguly to exit the team, at least in the short term. It is also clear, that the Indian team plateaued at the last World Cup and has never been the same in ODIs. I would compare this technique to shocking your body by switching up training regimes to increase performance and stimulate growth. Sourav needed to exit the team, re-evaluate his commitment, YES, commitment. If you are truly committed, you will act like the fit international athlete that you are supposed to be. Mr. Bhattacharya, I know all of Bengal is proud of Mr. Ganguly, but making statemetns like "As for Greg complaining about his not following fitness regime,he must understand Saurav is over 30 and u cant make him do rounds as this thingsneeds to be incorporated when young and cant be introduced at the age of 30(I think Saurav wont have any problems working out at nets for hours together on his batting)." only proves my point. Are you actually saying its OK for below par fitness o prevail in the team. I take care of me and train hard and I do not even represent my country in sports. I cannot stand the fact that an unfit, lethargic man, less fit than I am is supposed to be chasing down balls in the field. Got only two words "chal khisak".

As for the people complaining about a bias, YOU have a bias. You have a bias against the smarter people that want to bring about change when not caring about whos toes they step on. Have youever built anything? Have you designed something that should be robust? Do you create as part of you job? In ANY field? You will learn (if you want to do your job right) that you must tear up and re-buil;d. Just because a huge system slowly ambers along, and it takes a huge effort to change it for the better does not mean it should not be done. You owe it to the nationto bring about change, its just a sad indicator of the state of affairs the lengths people have to go and the criticism they have to face to see that happen. Move on India, full steam.

I am not a fan of either Dravid/Chappel or Ganguly. But well said Rajat, thats the point!!! Think rational.

Get kapil, Gavaskar and every legend on because they have records. Come on Saurav might average 40 or 50 or whatever,but as a player what is his service to team in past 1-2 years.If Dravid fails(touchwood!) for over a year even he will get the same fate, on the contrary Saurav has been lucky with Dalmiya and other his genre politicians backing him this long..atlast sense prevails. Some of them harp about century against Zimbabwe, that way everyone deserves a chance. Why not Dinesh Mongia who has done better in english conditions against them in county(better than zimbabwe bowling attack) and also in the future local matches..also there are many players better than him in current form. He his a legend, ask him to join the team of Shastri, Siddhu.No problem. Problem with him is attitude..also performance. Every 1 in 10 odd matches he makes a century and saves himself from the disgrace of being dropped. If you see his record in test..its sheer luck that likes of Dravid is by his side. Yeah, for his services and as a token of gratitude make him captain for Bengal. Think of the morale of the new Indian rejuvenation, if he comes back...he will once again starton process of creating a new team within team India. I dont believe a public spat like this can be overlooked, afterall folks its a gentlemen game..i know saurav fans feel bad but folks frankly its time to move on.

I beleive the selection for national team ought to be made on a role/talent basis rather than personality basis. Players at the national level are expected to be self motivating and leaders. Most of the blogs I have read describe Saurav as some one who raises the potential of the team. I agree to a certain extent that argument but that explains under dogs but not Great teams. One must not forget that a captain not only makes executive decisions but also occupies one spot that can be reserved for a batsman or a bowler or an allrounder. Therefore self performance is a key indicator for a place in the team even if the team is winning. Sometimes decisions are hard but every one have to beleive in the process and process will give results. Lastly not to forget, motivators can be outside the team as well!!!

Listen to all of you. Each one attacks the 'Ganguly' question with a mind that is obviously made up. What is wrong in selecting the 'best' possible side without paying homage to fallen heroes, regional quotas and out of place analogies. Sourav should play if he can command a place in the side, the same rule applies to Dravid, Sehwag etc. if teh coach cannot opine on the composition of the side what is his role? Pitch analysis?

Hi..
read te same thing abt wright/ganguly combo wen tey won te lords final...perfect sync...etc..i may sound cynic but teres still a long way 2 go b4 tey prove temselvs..but i do agree 2 te point tat te results wud largely depend upon te political aspects..shame tat a "professional" team as ours is so much manipulated by external factors...btw..in gods name wat right has agarkar got 2 comment abt dada?he shd hve been kicked out long time bak...te malice wudn b cleard till guyz like agarkar get 2 b a part of te indian team...

I apologize the statement I quoted was Kunjan's and NOT Mr. Bhattacharya's. Please accept my apologies.
Arjun

All wise investors know that past performance is not necessarily indicative of future performance. In the case of Ganguly especially as his brightest days are receding into the distance.

Ganguly's illustrious past and contribution to Indian cricket must be honoured. The question is not what he did in the past but what he has to offer for the future.

While it is true that Saurava Ganguly is India's best Captain ever no matter what people might have to say about Pataudi or others, it is sad that this drama has dragged on so long. It would be great if Ganguly can retire and exit gracefully.

Also, I think one of the main reasons the board could not get rid of Chappell even after the email scandal is because of his stature. A lesser known player like Tom Moody would probably have been gobbled up by the BCCI and asked to pack his bags.

Oh wise one:
IT should have been clear that most comments are not about Sambit's article, theyre in response to other people's perceived ignorance. Just as I perceive you to be. I briefly leafed through this list of comments and fail to see a post other than mine that uses any analogies. If there is another, disregard the following, if not read on.

Paying homage to out of place analogies? Please elaborate. I fail to see the out of place analogy. Perhaps your mind isn't broad enough to see similarities in process between unrelated actions. THe whole purpose of an analogy is to point out a perculiar aspect of the situation being discussed by using an example that is SO distant in relation that only the peculiarity will be visible in the current context. Go read the post again, and this time, THINK. The anaolgies are more pertinent than you think. People need to be jolted, ever heard of checks and balances? Applies to the human body as well. As for the tear and rebuild concept, why does creation of a good thing seem so distant from the team issue to you? The system needs change , people are lazy, not interested or like some here prefer the old way because theyre cozy within it. I don't see how you don't see, self-proclaimed wise one.

I think Ganguly should be reinstated with great caution. His time as a batsman is on the wane. He has been on the team for quite a while purely because he was the captain and remained so as long as the rest of the team was performing. This new team that forming is under Dravid is India's future. If Ganguly is reinstated then it should as a player and only a player i.e. not as captain. A captain should be someone who can command his place in the team for the foreseeable futre - this is unfortunately not the case with our Saurav any more. If he is willing to play under the current team ethos without ill feelings and with a whole heart he will still be an asset to India and should be given a fair chance.

Getting dropped from the team is no issue. What probably gets most people agitated is the length of time given to any player to recover his form. A player like Ganguly with a tremendous track record deserves more opportunities than a player with a mere 10 games under his belt. International sport is not a place for forgiveness to anybody, and by the same credo, anyone may be dropped. If Ganguly proves that his hunger and ability to make runs is still there, then he should be brought back, albeit, not at the expense of a player already performing. The CV, as some people have called the track record, should be allowed to decide only the tolerance period for the player, and nothing else.

It is indeed sad that a set of circumstances and mostly unpleasant events had to lead to this much needed change of power. How I wish I could have seen the day when Ganguly could have willingly and with dignity handed over the mantle to Dravid. Alas Ganguly is not big enough a person to do that.

There are people who say that John Wright did a great job by helping the Indian team in so many ways while still remaining in the background and adjusting to the "Indian way". One wonders however whether it was indeed the right approach given that clearly he was not happy with the way things were running in his last one year.

Is it really a good thing to keep your frustrations to yourself knowing that things are not going the way they should and be secure in your job or is the correct way the Chappell one ? To put your job on the line for the sake of your principles ? I tend to go with Chappell on this one

From the comments it seems that the bongs cant wait for India to loose. Hard to imagine its the same state that produced Netaji.

The past few weeks have been a tremendous relief, like a breath of fresh air to see the Indian team smiling and winning again. Chappel definitely desrves credit from the indian fans for this turnaround.

The question that begs to be asked is 'Why did Saurav Ganguly' become dispensable ? It is very rare that in a team the captain becomes the weakest link or the first one to go, when the time comes for shake-up. If you look at the current team barring the new players such as Gambhir or Venugopal Rao, there is no one there who can be considered weaker or more dispensbale than Ganguly. So, the plain fact is that Saurav Ganguly was hanging on in the team just by being the captain of the team. This situation had gone on for a long time, perhaps ever since world cup. So, there is no way this could have continued for ever. It took some one of Chappel's bluntness to expose this and the rest as they say is history.

I am not sure who in this current Indian team Saurav will replace. Sachin, Dravid, Sehwag, Kaif, Yuvraj ? No way. Comparing newcomers to Saurav would be patently unfair to the newcomers, so he can't replace them either. So, I think the writing is on the wall. Saurav Ganguly's time is up. He had a dream run as a captain pre-world cup. After that, he was literally dreaming, but now the dream has been rudely interrupted. Good-bye Saurav Ganguly, and sorry for the wake-up call, but we got to move on.

why is it always about Ganguly? why no 1 else c or take note when others not performing..and they only raise a voice whenever ganguly fail to deliver? where was Dhoni yr ago? who bring him up? i dont c tendulkar,dravid,sehwag hittin 100 or even 50 in every match.speakin of sehwag as far as i remem he is without a big score now for a while...i think l2 strait matches
all i gotta say is,Ganguly was and is the best indian captain,the only person who can only match aussies and give them run for there money...sure wasnt soft spoken dravid
enuff said

i think if one looks at the success of ganguly as a captian or a player it would be surprising to say that he has won most of the semi finals with
teams of the second order..say zimbabwe , west indies etc.....in a series and his boasting about reaching finals make no real sense. talk about his fielding..this man cannot even bend for picking the ball(lazy)....when he fields he unnecessarily falls for no reason of inertia.batting ....he is not such good actor mr& mrs bollywood..eesss! the fright shows on his face. Not scoring in the duleep trophy further approves of his credentials. one cannot take a lame or an old horse for a race just because it had in past won many races. taking australian board into consideration, waugh was sidelined so that the young talent could show its face. and its high time for a non performing oldman leave his place for the youngsters..all one has to count is performance....cricket is not ... only his birth right.

I have only onething to say. If Ganguly can be part of the Indian Team and he can help India excel he should be in the team else there others who have the potential to do it.
It is a question he needs to answer sincerely. Will he be an asset to the team or burden.

This should hold good for all players. They should remember of the zillions of Indians, they are the lucky eleven who are carring the Spirit and emotion of the people of India. It is not about a single player.

It is people like Lehman because of whom Australia have another match winner in Michael Clarke.

What remains to see is if Ganguly as the heart to do it.

Sambit's article, I guess, was more about Chappell's courageous decision
making than of the spat between him and Ganguly. But the responses here
talk more about who is right. Chappell has not only brought a lot of new
ideas, but he has also given hope to many other fringe players who are
desperate to perform on the big stage. Someone says that the team is the
same except for Saurav and Zaheer. But if one looks at it more objectively,
you will notice that so many other new faces have took the field and
performed admirably unlike previous days when they were simply kept in the
15 and silently pushed out of the squad the next series.

And let us not forget the reason behind Ganguly's exclusion. Loss of form
and fitness are not the only reasons held against him. The selectors have
clearly stated that attitude and team spirit are key parameters. I am sure
Ganguly can contribute more to the team as a talented player, but his
inclusion will definitely bring down the morale and put a dampener on the
'open culture' promoted by Chappell and Dravid. I was a die-hard fan of
Ganguly the cricketer and leader throughout his career. I am still a great
fan of his elegant strokeplay. But I still can not come to terms with what
he did in Zimbabwe(going to the press). In Ganguly's own words, it was
'schoolboy stuff'. Fans like me were all the more shocked since we always
thought of him as a role model in aggressive leadership. Precisely because
of this blunder, Ganguly's time with the Indian team is well and truly
over.

And to top it all, the board president - who actually acts more of a
spokesman to Dalmiya than BCCI president - has come out with a dumb
statement which threatens to de-moralise players, fans, support staff and
selectors at one stroke. But having been witness to his 'laugh-the-talk'
media blurt immediately after the Chappell-Ganguly patch up, we are not
surprised. And nobody talks about the e-Mail leak that Mr.Mahendra
authored. May be he is still investigating! I only wish that November sees
the last of these administrators!!

There is a saying, "If its working, don't fix it !" The current team is doing great, we dont need a Mr. Ganguly along with his eternal helper Mr. Dalmiya to mess things up.

Saurav Ganguly was pretty good about a year ago on the tour to Australia. Guess who helped him with his preparation to batting? The current coach. Ganguly played better than anyother time in his career, on pacy, bouncy pitches down under.

However, with time, Ganguly clearly became complacent (perhaps because he thought that his place in the team was his as long as he chose to be!) and utterly incompetent against hostile bowling targetted at his ribs.

A leader needs to have guts, conviction and the respect of his followers. Ganguly lost all of that and also the support of the masses.

The BCCI may be a private body, but the team represents India. Apologists for Ganguly should show some respect for atleast that reason alone.

He is not bigger than the game! The only thing big about Ganguly is his ego and false pride (read a 3 centuries in the last world cup against kenya and Namibia etc etc. (Boo)!!!)

If the Ganguly fans (predominantly from Bengal)are so adamant about Ganguly playing as a captain ... I have a suggestion that will make them and the rest of India very happy ...

SOURAV GANGULY TO CAPTAIN BANGLADESH !!!

But the only problem is ... whom will be score century against then???

Ganguly was a great captain, no doubt but then he has done almost nothing in the last one year as a player.Big sixes he used to hit against spinners have almost vanished.Dravid on the other hand has always been very consistent.India can;'t win test matches without him since his technique is the best.Laxman too has got a lot of talent but he has to learn to be consistent.With Greg chappel becoming INDIA's coach ,startergy we except will be simple.If you are performing you are in the team otherwise no.Your name is not that important.It's very important that we should support him

Fine arguments here and enjoyed reading them. Below is my take on it.

Something snapped in Ganguly after the world cup and somehow he is not be able to put himself well in the game. It could be the wide publicizing of his weakness by the worldwide media and ganguly still falling prey to the same weakness before the eyes of the world that seems to be robbing him of all the pleasures of playing cricket and actually enjoying it. It feels like everytime he gets out in the field, he is at war with himself to break the self-imposed shackles and prove the world his point with the bat for once. Alas! but he was not being able to.

A appropriate redemption for him would be actually to rehabilitate himself and correct his weakness in practice, but not practice before a packed stadium and leave himself exposed. Doing so he had hurt his chances and obviously somebody had to point the emperor of his missing clothes and it turned out to be Chappell. Ganguly certainly overstayed in his position where his contribution was becoming more and more redundant.

Even now, the option for ganguly would be rectify his weakness and defects in his batting and come back strong. Recently Zaheer Khan in Duleep trophy, on a placid Indian Pitch, could expose Ganguly's weakness twice before the whole country and cricket selectors. This only proves Ganguly is still not good enough to represent the country, immaterial of his past glories or whatsoever runs under his belt.

Ganguly is a delight to watch when "in zone". However assuming if Ganguly is still allowed to come back to the team, it is no rocket science to imagine what the opponents will be having in store for him. A couple of bouncers from the pacemen and ganguly might as well be walking back to the pavilion standing true to his "Cyber Ads for Maggi Noodles". This would hurt his comeback more seriously and all the more difficult for the INDIANS to give him a better farewell. A good welcome to the cricket team is equally important as good farewell. And no matter if it is a welcome or farewell one has to earn it. Earning the respect of the team-mates, coach and countrymen is what Ganguly has to do now. This was the path he once travelled and now got lost. His countrymen are not going to do it for him in the name of "better farewell". It is for him to struggle for it and reclaim his lost glory.

If you look at the performance of Ganguli and VVS Laxman in the last 3 years in ODI, Laxman overall played better, but he was not given as many chances as Ganguli. The one complaint about Laxman was he was a sloppy fielder and also bad runner between wickets while taking quick runs. The same can be said of Ganguli. No one came to support Laxman and he was dumped inspite of his sterling performance in ODI's in the last Australian tour. Unfortunately in Indian Cricket it has always been who do you know, in which team you paly etc., rather than your performance alone. This mentality needs to change

I must say I've been enjoying the various posts onthis site. Regarding the state of affairs of Indian cricket at the moment, I feel that the best thing would be to sit back and watch. The typical Indian cricket follower seems to exhibit a markedly frivolous disposition regarding what
good and what's bad and what ought to be done and what not. To use geeky terminology, his attitude resembles a Markov process -
a process whose current state is only influenced by the immediate past and nothing beyond it. Add to this all the brouhaha that the media creates (and some vernacular newspapers are notorious for this), and you find a total lack of broader
perspective.

The change of guard was required and it's good that it happened, albeit in an overall distasteful manner. The fact that Sourav's been axed could also be a blessing in the long run for the guy himself. It'll give him time
to figure out what exactly he needs to do to get back in the competitive arena. And the Dravid-Chapell combination needs to be given ample time before it's judged. In the longer run I would want to see Sourav integrated into the side; it seems (right now) that his very name has become anathema in some form. I'm not saying that he ought to be pampered eternally, based on past laurels, but the team management should have a healthy long term vision regarding his place and functionality in the team. I still have a strong gut feeling that he can make a successful comeback to the one day side and contribute
effectively to the Indian team's future explots.

Arjun Kapoor [I think it is you, who commented on my comments]
please read my comments carefully before questioning them.
'Homage to fallen heroes'. No one should command a place in the side on past glories. 'Out of place analogies', refers to - 'same thing happened to Azharuddin,' in one of the other posts. So smoothen your ruffled feathers, in reading your piece, we seem to be saying the same thing. NO different selection criteria for neophytes and veterans. ONLY performance as a criteria. Of course the system needs change. And by the way my monicker was earned not self annointed.

I agree with Sambit on the BCCI President's remarks. However, it is way too early to make a statement about Dravid/Chappel combination heading the right way since:
1. How do we know that their visions/process methodologies about Indian cricket are in sync?
2. The coach/captain could afford to do the changes as they went into the Srilanka series with nothing to lose. I guess, how worse can an experiment go when a team is at the bottom in world cricket.
3. Sambit's statements state that this is the first time that the coach and captain are in sync. That is not true, since pre-world cup relationship between Saurav and Wright were in sync.

Greg Chappell's attitude to Ganguly supporters in the team has been commented upon in the recent past, that he doesn't give them the time of day. His tyrannical approach led to underwhelming results for South Australia. It will be interesting how long this authoritarian attitude will work with the Indians (or for that matter any other team in the world, even the Aussies couldn't handle him for long). I do find it funny that people question Ganguly's Napoleonesque way of leading the team but all of a sudden succumb to the "white" power of a new coach to the entire system. What makes Greg Chappell all that when he has barely anything to speak of in terms of an illustrious past as a coach, or for that matter a captain receiving repeated hidings from the indomitable Windies of the late 70s and 80s. But one can always wait and laugh at leisure at the Sambit Bals of the world. I really would like an answer to that question that Arjuna Ranatunga posted in a recent article, have the seniors in the Indian team even given Ganguly a call. At the end of it Ganguly may have helped innumerable number of young careers but in the end the rest of the Indian team behave like those that inhabited teams of the past, selfish to the core and with no sense of loyalty or dignity.

Few people are asking how come Board Officila's (After Mr.Mahendra has made a comment that Ganguly can come back) can make such a coment.There was no question when Mr.Chappell ,in his leaked e-mail wriiten Ganguly as "Mentally and Physically" unfit.Nobody bothered.This can happen with Others too.Mr.Chappel has no right to say these craps against some one who has made 15,000 international runs and 30+ hundreds in international cricket.If he has done with a bad technique,let it be,ultimately result should matter.Sanjay Manjerekar had one of the best techniques once in Indian Cricket,unfortunately he could not translate into runs.International Cricket,for that matter,any sports, is not about only techniques,it requires some thing else,and Ganguly has got loads of it.So,before doing any "Character Assasination" - think about all these.I am neither a supporter of Sourav nor against him.Atleast,you should not raise question about Sourav as a player.He has not performed lately,correct.Drop him,but I suppose in any given day he will be better bat for any team than some players choosen in India Team.Also,look at the performance of Shewag and Tendulkar.Keep a same yardstick for all players.It seems,Ganguly is the easy target for everybody.And for Mr.Chappel,process should not be agaianst any one,there should be only one doctrine "Perform or Perish".You might be a Great Cricketer,Sorav Ganguly is no less.He never had to do "under-arm" bowling to secure win for India.

Arabinda

Since the 2000-01 series against Aussies, here's how the Indian middle order has fared in Tests:
Sachin - 3718 runs in 73 innings at 50.93
Dravid - 4572 runs in 86 innings at 53.16
Laxman - 3184 runs in 69 innings at 46.14
Sourav - 2355 runs in 71 innings at 33.16

In simple words, Sourav has simply failed as a Test cricketer over a sustained period of time.

How is Sourav even a contender for a Test slot? Why do Sourav supporters try to find conspiracy angles in his dropping from the squad when the real issue lies with his performance over the past few years?

Chappell is absolutely spot on as he tries to build a team based on performance as the only criteria. And all credit to him for sticking to his convictions in face of all the opposition.

It is too early to attribute Indian team's recent success to strategies adopted by Greg Chappell. The decision to keep out players like Saurav Ganguly and Zaheer Khan seems to have resulted from mundane things like personal differences and ego clashes rather than sound strategic thought process on part of Greg Chappell. Indian media has a habit of going overboard based on short term results. A balanced view needs to be taken and performances should be evaluated based on perspectives. First we have always performed well at home barring few blips here and there. Second, Sri Lanka is a team that has one of the worst records when it comes to playing beyond its shores.
Greg Chappell's record as a coach in Australia is not good at all, which points to the fact that he may have good technical skills but lacks man management skills. You cannot keep out quality players like Zaheer Khan because the coach does not like him. Such pettiness is not the way to go forward when one is coaching a national team.

A few observations from the whole lot of stuff thats being written (both here and in media in general)

1) Sourav Ganguly has excellent management skills and is able to help his teammates considerably better. It seems he has this gift of being able to motivate people to do things they would normally be unable to.

2) His form is suffering and he needs to make quite an effort to make it back in the team, though he may have something to contribute

3) His fielding, agility and speed on the field leave a lot to be desired.

Conclusion based on all of the above.

Ganguly should retire from cricket and become part of team management.
This will do the following:
a) Keep him away from the field (so his lethargy is not exposed)

b) He will not have to work very hard to regain his form and fitness since he would have retired.

c) He can get his opportunity to motivate players allowing the team to make use of his most obvious talent, that of being able to make the players do the unthinkable.

d) Lay to rest this incessant and worthless debate about Ganguly's utility as a cricketer/captain.

This solution also seems viable since according to a large section of indian supporters the Indian team is being run by the coach with the captain as the puppet. So this would give Sourav enough power to flex his muscles and do what he does best; motivate players, make strategies and give sensational interviews.

There seems to be too much emotion involved on both sides of the argument to bring Saurav back. Let us examine the facts:

1. In the last 4 years, Ganguly's average in Tests has been mediocre - around 30 - would be much lower without contribution from Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.
2. His form in domestic cricket continues to be erratic - two ducks to fast balls in the same match - does not inspire confidence
3. The team is comning along well with a common objective. Even some of the Ganguly-followers like Bhajji and Yuvraj - are embracing the new philosophy and have moved out of their comfort zone
4. Ganguly had bred incompetency and indiscipline due to a mixture of insecruity and partisanship. We do not want a repeat of that

Given all this, we should let the team remain as it is and give Kaif and Yuvraj a shot at a Test place - we need to find replacements for Ganguly, Dravid and Tendulkar. If Ganguly starts performings well (and actually scoring runs), bring him back - but let the current team management implement their policy that is moving Indian cricket forward. As for those who keep harking to his record, its the present that matters, not what he achieved 2 or 3 years back or his contribution to Indian cricket (which I agree is substantial) - right now he does not have much to offer and can be a destabilizing influence. And you cant blame him if he does destabilise the team, if brought back as a captain, for that would be self-preservation, which is a primal instinct. Its important not to get emotional, but look at this logically.

I would like to say one thing. Saurav was a great captian by pure luck and excellent talent of his fellow cricketers and give-away matches from other countries. I always felt that even parthiv patel can do the same thing as saurav , if he in that position. I never thought that he used his brain to do statergy than to make plans/relations to keep his place. Iam not from Bengal nor from the selection commitee.. I am cricket lover and like all the countries games.. I my view saurav should not get the chance to play atleast for Indian team. There may be many other team where he can fit, but not in Indian team. His records say a bit more. I am also a statistics loving guy and strongly feel that, his statistics against a strong opponent is just live giving away his wicket for a mere 10- 20 runs. I howver feel that he should deserve a chance to comeback and his test career in a proper manner or proper send off , For all the services he has done. Let do that .. and he should be well prepared for that. Fellows.. Cricket is a game .. just a game.. if you d onot play.. it is not the end of your life.... If you really enjoy the game.. do not spoil it with the dirty politics.. If saurav takes the captaincy and become automatic selection again, I think People of India should advise BCCI should take explanation from selectors. If you claim he has made 100 against North, howabout 2 ducks in Duleep final.

Ganguly WAS a great captain and led India to their greatest moments in 2003-04 especially the WC final in 2003 and I definitely think he should have been treated better by the BCCI. But that was in 2003. Even Steve Waugh won the WC in 1999 but in 2002 after ONE tri-series loss to NZ and South Africa he was sacked, despite having a 63% success rate. Its all about performing in the PRESENT. Ganguly's lean trot in tests and ODIs has been going on too long. Since 2004 he only has ONE test hundred and that too against a mediocre Zimbabwe attack. He still averages on 29.57 in tests since 2004, against all nations excl. Bangladesh. In ODI's he averages 27.69 since 2004 with 6 50's. Out of those 6 fifties 3 were against UAE, Kenya and Bangladesh and 2 against Sri Lanka and one against England. So why should he be in the team? Because he scored over 10000 runs in the past?? he WAS the greatest captain?? If the greatest Indian captain loses leads his side to losses in 15 ODI finals and is called great I dont know what bad would be.

i don't know why some people are asking for a ganguly comeback again and again.he used to be a good player and then a good captain untill the sucess got on his head and that's when he started doing politics in the team. he forgot what the word "TEAM" means, it means one group of people working together. at first place he shouldn't have disclosed whatever chapell told him in the dressing room and if he really wanted to disclose he should've done it the first day of the test before scoring a hundred. this was a very well planned statement from ganguly to make chapell look bad for telling him to step down but it din't seem to work because i guess cricket board and people are sensible enough to understand these kinda games. and now according to the latest news our former captain is literally begging to get back into the squad but i truly want to ask him where does he sees a place for him in the lineup. right now even our supersubs can't be replaced. if he wants to be the waterboy i guess then he should be given a chance.

It is so disgraceful to read biased opinions of all bengali folks.It is as if expressing views against ganguly is attacking bengali race. They need to grow up and take into perspective all the things being tried by the new coach and captain. There is no denying fact that Ganguly was struggling and whole Indian team was performing poorly. Everything was routine loosing matches from winning situations, batting collapses, individual performances. When a CEO of a company does not have anything to offer to a company and growth is stale, it is time for board of directors to change the leadership and infuse new ideas and direction. Intially, there will be unreast and chaos because people resist coming out of comfort zone but given bit of time everybody will fall in place. This bengali chaos is the same but it will also die soon with time. There must be other tigers in bengal who know how to play cricket. Let this tiger rest in peace and don't make his life more miserable.

I think that everybody is trying to push their opinion about this issue which is inducing bit of biasness.

If we step back and look, two things are clear...both Ganguly and Chappel are at fault. First, Chappel crossed his limits and authority to tell the Indian Captain that he does not deserve a place in team. Second, Ganguly...who captained India for several years, washed (his) dirty linens in public. Such behavior was not expected from a senior person like him...especially when he was captain.

Now, as far as current scenario is concerned, it looks like some dirty politics/prejudice is keeping Ganguly away from the team. Apart from his current (extended over a year) bad form, he deserves much better treatment than this and certainly a place in the team...at least in One Day team. He was never a test batsman and frankly never deserved a place in test team. But...he is one of the greatest one day players and still has much more to offer to the team in terms of experience and strategies.

Basically, we have to sparingly use Tendulkar, Ganguly and Dravid until upcoming worldcup. This all talk of having a pool of 20-22 players is fine...but, afterall, experience beats raw talent in most cases...and, we should keep that in mind.

On the other hand, Chappel has been a great addition to indian team as (compared to Wright...who at best was lethargic) he is bringing dynamism and healthy attitude among the players.

Another thing to look at is our opening pair in one day. We should bring back the best opening pair of Tendulkar-Ganguly, as Sehwag has proven no. of times that he can not be relied upon. At best, he can bat down the order for #4.

this is just win for south indian medias that's all. they were the one started against ganguly with nagma(film actress)issue.i think few years ago ganguly's father made comment against south indian media, from that day they started writing against ganguly and got success now. just example how the media reacted when he played against srilanka in srilanka last year he scored morethan 50 media started writing how many balls he faced and how many balls he wasted etc. if that's the case against all other players then its ok but its only against ganguly.the media made that he was best against small teams really its bias comment against ganguly. he was the one who scored higest runs and average against SA. is that SA is small team.give hime a chance if he is doin well ok otherwise BCCI can drop him.

Interesting comments about short pitched bowling. I can recall that in the Barbados test when India abjectedly collapsed to a West Indian pace attack on a bouncy pitch Ganguly scored 48 no in a total of 102 and top scored with a 60 in the second. The one thing that you can't deny is even if his technique was faulty he was a gutsy player. Everybody is quoting records, but cricket is not a game of statistics alone. If so Brearley would never have played more than a couple of tests (if any) for England. Sourav Ganguly taught India how to play as a unit and stick it in the face of the opposition. Dravid is going to show up as a softie eventually in this particular facet. Great batsmen do not necessarily make great captains. Waugh was another example, after a certain point in his career his style was ugly but thats what it takes to win games sometimes, of course without sacrificing the dignity of the game. I think both Waugh and Ganguly knew how to win and lose with grace, even if they hated to lose. We know that Greg Chappell lacked that trait quite definitely with his underarm tactics. Whats more astonishing is that its quite a certainty that Ganguly batted for Chappell becoming coach. He's probably paraphrasing Caesar now as he lies bleeding, "Et tu Greg"? I think if the rest of the Indian team had had any character they would have backed Ganguly and not grabbed their spots with ne'er a glance back in his direction. The old Indian traits (of the crab) are back on display now that the one man who had led them with a very different style is gone. The false dawn will soon pass.

Recent statements by Ganguly that he has no problems with Greg Chappell is a clever move by Ganguly. Now, he wants all of us to believe that, it was his spat with Chappell that resulted in his non-inclusion in the indian team! Ganguly was not included due to injury and by the time he recovered and scored some runs, the team had performed brilliantly without him. Dravid-Chappell combination is working fine and if there is an indication that Ganguly might be a disruptive factor in team-building process, then he should be ignored. The indian team simply cannot afford another u-turn at this time. The performance of players rub on each other and it is fair to say that Ganguly, with his poor fielding and suspect batting against short-pitch bowling will not help the team's cause. Dada has had his run, its now time for him to take a graceful exit. As cricket lovers, we have enjoyed his batting and successes tremendously. Its painful to watch him now. The one over from Shane Bond in Zimbabwe is enough proof for Ganguly to take the cue and hang his gloves.

all this talk about sourav ganguly is a complete waste of time. the choice of selectors is to pick the best 12. currently, the team chosen is the best on we have, based on form, talent and youth. the topic of ganguly should all but forgotten, as he as a cricketer has not contributed any runs in both froms of the game. chappell was signed in order to increase india's chances in the world cup. this is the players, coaches, staff and the board must work on to achieve the goal.

we all know, even the bengalis who support ganguly...is if he comes back into the squad, the board will continue their potical bias. indian cricket was corrupt political fraternity until chappell came into the frame.

simply putting it

: should be the best team with the best coach....working in conjunction

and should not be : a team selected by a corrupt board with their own political agendas with players such as ganguly in the team

sambit bal , i agree with you100%

Aniruddh Gupta obviously does not know the difference between the selection of a coach and the selection of a team and who are involved in the processes. If Ajit Agarkar's observation is wrong, then Ganguly should have gone eons ago. The stark reality lies in the famous observation of the former captain a couple of years ago in the telecast of an ICC series when he said "on current batting form, Ganguly should be batting at no.14"

Just like to add a few points.

I don't think Bal or the site is anti-Ganguly, professional sport moves rapidly with the times. Do we still have to have quaint notions of rewarding past performances at the cost of the current contests?

There must be some other way, a medal or something to express the Board's appreciation of Ganguly without trying to interfere with the selection process.

Looking at Hussey and Hodge batting in their first few tests after scoring a decade of first class runs , does India want a similar fate for Kaif and Yuvraj? Already the careers of Badani, Mongia, SriRam and now V Rao seem to be going nowhere.

Things have to get professional. No matter who, if a player is not performing and is costing the team he must be benched.

I found it galling that a dehydrated Kaif faced up to Australia in Nagpur, while Ganguly was MIA. Such talent must be given an early sustained opportunity in Tests and should not make way for seniority.

Wait and watch this IND-SA Series. Selectors will not have any other option than to bring back Ganguly, may be as a player only. But I am sure he will come back to top slot very soon. Nobody can stop him. I wish him all the best.

All said and done, it is pretty much clear that Sourav's time is up. However, knowing the state of Indian Cricket, it is also pretty clear that he will be drafted in the team in near future, as political pressure is also mounting on his behalf.
I am of the view that He should hang up his boots gracefully.

The main problem with the Indian Cricket now is with the selectors.They keep battling within them to keep their place secured,in turn they dont realise that they have a job on their hands to select a team to lead the country to victory.They want to show their superiority by standing by their selected players and not think about the country's progress.After all they want to take hold of the most money generating business of India.Even politicians have started to show interest in this game which is a very ominious sign for Indian cricket.only God should Save the future of Indian Cricket.Selecting a Coach to the Indian Team Is becoming a bit of bother now.See,The top Cricket playing team in the world right now(Australia)Does not have that problem with them.Thats because they select a coach from their own place.Their coach need not be a great player and a good knowledge minded person.They want aperson who is well equipped to identify the talent among the players whom the selectors select.just think why did not the Australian board select Greg chappel as their team Coach,Who was their country's greatest player of the past.its high time the Indian Board stop thinking about this foreign coach policy and start searching for a new talented coach in our own country.ithink the board must start a new academy to start searching for the coach talent as they do for players and spend the same money on them

If there is talk about Ganguly coming back to the Indian team for ODI's, then what about the player whom the Australaians regarded as the best batsman - VVS Laxman.
He scored a century and a half century in the Challenger series, but was left out in the dark for no reason. If Laxman is dropped because he isn't that fit and is slow in the field, then what say about Ganguly ? Ganguly is also slow and not that fit and on top of that runs out his partners. We have seen this umpteen times where he has run out Tendulkar, Dravid, Laxman et al and has ruined Indian chances of victory in those matches. I can't recall anyone whom I have seen lets the ball sail through his legs none other than Ganguly.
It's really uncalled for from the BCCI president to come out defending Ganguly. This shows that politics and petty politics at that rules Indian cricket. It was very frustrating to read that Ganguly's selection is based on India's results in the next two ODI's. The Indian team has two oppsitions in today's match - One South Africa and Two - the BCCI politics.

It might help if we think of the Indian cricket not in terms of Ganguly, but who are likley to be the best 16 players in 2007. However, given the current rage on this board re Ganguly, let us anlyse Ganguly and Indian cricket from 3 available choices.

1. No Ganguly - Indian cricket has turned a chapter already.

2. Ganguly as batsman for last 2 SAF games under Dravid.

3. Ganguly as captain following the 2 SAF games.

On the available evidence, which scenario makes more sense to move forward?

I percieve most of the comments are cloaked either in vanadalism to root out Ganguly or are in his blind support.Only Abhijeet Joshi seems to have treated it with equanimity.Though I am still a die hard Ganguly supporter but with the new crop of players like Dhoni,Srisanth,RP Singh et al emerging, a feeling that a new era(I dont like this proverbial term but have to use whenever India wins a spate of matches)is beckoning.So I wont like Ganguly to be forced into the side presently.But I think with overseas tours of Pakistan and west indies in view the team would be better off with his wealth of experience. Though there isn't much to write about his performance in the Duleep Trophy I think he deserves a one final chance to prove his worth.

I dont see the point why we come back to the point of Ganguly being sacked as captain & being dropped from the team blah blah blah. Heck even if tendulkar doesnt perform in 10 matches drop him. Let him sort out his issues. That should be the approch. Past records & centuries dont mean a thing. If the great Steve Waugh can be shown the door, I guess any one can be booted out of the team for Non performance, No matter how Iconic stature he has had in past

To all those Ganguly supporters, I ask, "Was Chappel correct in his characterization of Ganguly in the email he sent to the BCCI?"

If so, how can you still support Ganguly? Regardless of how good Gaguly was in the past, one has to ask how is he handling his lack of form? Is he doing it with grace and omposure and working hard to rectify the problems or is he insecure, defensive and resorting to playing political games.

It seems to me from Chappel's email, Gaguly was resorting to political gamesmanship to cover up his lack of form. This cannot be good for Team India, Indian Cricket and the fans.

Dear readers,

Having gone through almost al of the above it was quite noticable that major percentage of veiws are against bringing Ganguly back. but we must undersatnd that though the selectors have done a good job in blodding youngsters they may also surprise us by bringing back gangs in the near future. My only worry is the demoralising effect it would have on other proven players like Laxman and to some extent Mongia who inspite of their consistent performance in the dom. cricket have always been the scapegoats. Anyway the selectors have their own way and lets hope they get it right. whoever wins, whatever combination succeeds on the longer run only time will answer. as for now my firm opinion is that GANS could have called it quits in a better way as I envisage a situation where he would be forced to do so as like many of the predecessors. In this context I would also bring in Former England Nasser Hussains' graceful exit now and it would be better for Gangs to follow him.

I fail to understand why people view what Chappell did as a high risk strategy. For close to a year after the orld cup the present Indian team did nothing of note in the one dayers. Personnel changes were called for, if for no other reason than to give the "seniors" a chance to clear rheir heads and to disabuse themselves of any notions of their place in the general scheme of things.
The pakistan series showed up India as lacking in Allrounders. Shahid Afridi, Abdul Razzaq and Shoaib Malik showed the importance of guys who could contribute in all aspects of the game. As far as i can see, coach Chappell adopted the most common sense approach possible. So kudos to him. Win or lose what he did had to be done.

I think what Greg Chapple did was right. He was brought in as a coach, I believe, with expectation to produce results. If in his analysis he determined a need to shake things upside down to produce the results expected of him by BCCI, he was right in stating what was holding the team as well as himself back by him sending an email to the board. He handled it right by sending his analysis to the board. As a coach appointed by the board, he was only answerable to the board.

I admire Ganguly for what he brought to the team - grooming youngsters and instilling fighting spirit. But the last two years of Ganguly was different. I have no regrets for him being sidelined.

Lastly, the less said about BCCI is better for Indian cricket. Mahendra Sing is a disgrace. The guy has no back of his own. BCCI will be better served if BCCI is freed from Dalmiya scorch.

Ganguly has to prove his credentials as a batsmen as his chances of securing the captaincy is very remote.

The idea should be to select the best 11 and then choose the captain.

Ganguly's current form in the domestic arena will dictate whether he deserves a place in the playing XI.

The 11 / 12 playing any match representing India, have (or should have) a lot to play for. Until Chappel happened, many of these positions were treated as if 'baap ka'. Typical (recent) case is Ganguly, who had no business for several months to be in the team, leave alone being its captain. Naturally, in order to 'create' value for himself in the team, he did lots of things to the detriment of 'team India' ...by eschewing many potential possibilities (as Chappel showed vs Sri Lanka), by being lax in endorsing a culture of fitness, by hanging on...creating differences within the team (any manager with 10+ yrs of work ex knows exactly how one can 'create value' for one self within a team !!). The tremendous amount of new talent that has emerged in the Indian team is a testimony to Ganguly's stonewalling on several fronts.

If one goes thru Ganguly's several press briefings, one sees a clear 'down playing' of Senior members' contribution... Ganguly perhaps mentions grudgingly to Sachin / Dravid in but a few of his several 100 press meets. Ganguly's success as a captain appears to owe a lot more to circumstances (including BCCI's environment) rather than to his own contribution. There is no single series/ or a three month period of his long tenure as a captain, where he assumed authority based on his performance.

Chappel has been on a dream turf since his appointment...not because of what he has done so far, but by the set of circumstances surrounding the time of his appointment...a defunct captain, tremendous talent on the fringes, basics of team all wrong, not an ounce of smart thinking going on in cricketing matters, 'down played' seniors...etc etc...and a team that (only) lost the last WC final !

More to come.........

Can ganguly really adopt to the dynamic batting rotation implemented by Chappel/Dravid?
My answer is No. He has always been impatient if he is not getting batting or looses interest in the game if he gets out early. The rotation may even be perceived by some as targeting Ganguly and which in turn may cause more upheavel in the team.
Damn it!! this is Team India and not Team Ganguly or Team Dravid.

There are two points in this discussion about Saurav Ganguly that keep getting left out.

1: When comparing his recent test average with that of others in the Indian middle order (ie; Sachin, Rahul, VVS) keep in mind that's his ave while captain of the Indian team - possibly one of the most high pressure jobs there is in the world. See how Sachin or Rahul stack up against that (I don't know myself - I am suggesting that we need to keep that in the picture). Also, see what's happened to the batting average of many another captain after assuming the helm of his country.

2: There's a lot of talk about Saurav's inflated scores agains minnows. In the World Cup at least, every time there have been some spectacular upsets (Kenya over WI; Zim over Aus; B'desh over Pak; and on and on). India have by and large managed to avoid such a meltdown in large part because of players like Saurav who score when it is expected of them. I'd like to take a second look at those score cards against minnows in key games - and see how well the other stalwarts of the Indian top order did against them. If Saurav gets a hundred against a team which has easily dismissed Sachin and company surely he deserves some credit for that?

Cheers, Krishna.

Ganguly is the past Dravid is the present. The young Indian team looks good. Ganguly was one of the finest players that cricket has seen, I think he should call it a day.

At last Dravid got what he deserved since over 2 years i guess. It required a Chappell to trigger it all.We cannot progress if we cannot take proper decisions . Please tell me which indian captain had such a long reign like Ganguly.Still we talk of saying as the he is the most successful captain and so on if you captain for 5 yrs you would obviously win some. To me as as a keen follower of the game , his captaincy had nothing to do with the success( very little ) which we had. Lakshman and Dravid's heroic innings turned the tide against Australia in the series here.Definitely Ganguly contributed as a batsman ,a one day player. If you analyse, the developmnet of the team has been hampered before Chappell/ Dravid took over. Over 2 years the reluctance to experiment, wanting dravid to Keep wickets had gone on too long.
Thank god for Harsha's interview of ganguly at Zimbabwae. Ganguly please be graceful you have had your moments in the sun!

There is no doubt that Ganguly did a good job as a captain. But we cannot forget the role played by other members of the team...Dravid for instance. I don`t even remember the number of times he has rescued the Indian team from disaster. He is known as the WALL for nothing. It is his time to be at the helm of the Indian cricket team. He fully deserves it.
Regarding Ganguly, he has done a great job but one has to move on. Look what the Australians did to Steve Waugh. One has to be ruthless and look in the right direction. There should be no place for useless sentiments in this world with cut throat competition. Yes, he deserves his place in the history books and should be respected. But he has to move on. He has been again selected in the Indian test team to play Sri Lanka. Mark my words, this will be his last series as a cricketer. I also agree with people on the role of selectors (good for nothing). Imagine Kiran More justifying the inclusion of Ganguly as a "cricketing allrounder"....K.More for one should know what an allrounder is. Maybe Flintoff`s name will ring a bell. Ganguly has taken 25 wickets in his career....quite an allrounder`s performance. My request to the selectors is to be BOLD and MOVE ON. Build a team for the future and stop looking back.

While Sambit Bal's article was interesting, some of the comments in reply.. are well analysed, thought out, rational and others
downright biased and blindly supportive of Ganguly. Me too, like the so many who have been rational, have enjoyed Ganguly's exploits every bit in the past but do we need a passenger in the team when u look at his fitness. It irritated me no end when it came to Saurav's fielding and running between the wickets. Now, the stress is on fitness and you either shape up or ship out. What Yuvraj,Kaif & Raina have done is to pass the fielding "infection". Every body in the team now is diving and the body language so great. Sri Lanka, irrespective of their seeding are a good bunch to beat anyday...let's not be fooled by which combo(Wright/Saurav or Greg/Dravid)does it for India!
while John Buchanan is looking to the future where fielders can be ambi-dextrous and throw with either hand and things like that,it is pathetic that someone pleads that Saurav is over 30 and his fielding should be considered accordingly. Greg will be remembered for his intolerance
for indiscipline and fitness. His other idea of players being adaptable to diff batting positions is proving to be a success too!Irrespective of the results..he has brought a culture into the team. We may still lose but atleast there is a belief that it won't be due to lack of committment.If these lead India to greater heights then why bother too much abt little things?

Dravid deserves to be a captain. Ganguly has got a chance to prove himself in the test team.