5 legends who never won the World Cup

Sourav Ganguly

Ganguly, fondly called ‘Dada’, was also known as the god of the off-side. No one could beat him when it came to scoring boundaries at will on the off-side. His opening partnership with Sachin Tendulkar is still considered among the best in ODI history.

No one is born a legend; he becomes one over the course of time through sheer dedication and hard work. Someone who epitomizes that would be Sourav Ganguly - a truly inspirational cricketer and captain, he left his stamp on the game.

But what truly made a fabulous, match-winning batsman a legend was the impact he had as a captain for India. Having taken over the reins post the match-fixing scandal in 2000 when the Indian cricket team was in tatters, he transformed the nation.

He was given a young, inexperienced side and he nurtured them. Some of the players who would go on to win the World Cup in 2011 for India like Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh and Virender Sehwag were people who flourished under ‘Dada’s’ captaincy.

In the ICC World Cup in 2003, the confidence and self-belief he brought to the side were very evident. They fell short through the extraordinary performance of the mighty Australians in the final of what was a truly memorable campaign.

A cricketer who has added so much value to Indian cricket could not win the World Cup. In the year 2007, India bowed out in the group stage, ensuring that one of the finest batsmen and leaders in the ODI game never landed the coveted trophy.