Sourav Ganguly, the former India skipper, was renowned for his brand of aggression on the field. He is considered to be one of the all-time great captains that India has ever produced. Almost every single Indian cricket fan remembers the infamous scenes after India’s victory in the Natwest final at Lord’s.
Though we all know about Ganguly’s abilities with the bat, something that was very underrated in his inventory was his bowling skills. The southpaw picked 100 wickets in ODI’s at an average of 38.06, including a career-best figure of 5/16.
“He’s a lot slower than me – Sourav Ganguly says about Sunil Gavaskar
The ex-cricketer in a talk show with Gaurav Kapur revealed how he was a more potent bowling option when compared to Sunil Gavaskar.
When it comes down to a battle of words, Sourav Ganguly doesn’t back down from speaking his mind. When compared with Sunil Gavaskar regarding his bowling acumen, Ganguly had this to say.
“Nahi, he’s a lot slower than me. His deliveries had to be pushed through the air in order to reach (the wicketkeeper). I was able to do it on my own. On one hand, mine (edges) went through to the keeper but for him, the keeper had to come forward to collect the balls cleanly,” he commented wittily.
In all, Sourav Ganguly played 113 Tests and 311 ODIs for the country. The left-handed batsman was a prolific One Day International (ODI) batsman, with over 11,000 ODI runs (average of 41.02) to his name in 300 innings. He is one of the most successful Indian Test captains to date, winning 21 out of 49 test matches. Ganguly retired in 2008.
Affectionately known as Dada, he was elected as the President of the Cricket Association of Bengal and he served the position from 2015 to 2019. Currently, Ganguly serves as the President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India.