Indian captaincy was closest to my heart: Sourav Ganguly

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly's ascension to the position of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president was a surprising one but the ‘Prince of Kolkata’ has adapted to that role brilliantly. It is a refreshing change for Indian cricket when a top Indian player is heading the cricket board.

In an exclusive interview with Indranil Basu and Shanivi Sadana as part of Sportskeeda's new series, Free Hit, Sourav Ganguly was put on the spot and asked what the tougher role was - captaining the country or leading the BCCI? The former Indian skipper responded by saying that captaincy was closest to his heart.

“Captaining was brilliant, that was my heart. Nothing compares to that. Yes, BCCI president is a huge honour,” Sourav Ganguly said.

“My father gave me a cricket bat at the age of 13, I played all levels for state, played for India U-19, played for India, captained India, president of CAB, president of the Board. God’s been really kind. As a cricketer, I don’t think I could ask for more; it’s been a huge honour,” the BCCI president said.

Sourav Ganguly notched up a fantastic record as the captain of the Indian team. Between 2000 and 2005, Sourav Ganguly led India in 49 Tests, winning 21 of them and losing 13. Out of these 21 Tests, 11 victories came away from home, including wins in England and Australia.

Sourav Ganguly feels he had the required freedom with both jobs

The BCCI president feels both the jobs give him enough freedom to work as he pleases.

“Captaincy gave me the freedom to build a team; running the board has been an enormous freedom. Jay (Shah, BCCI secretary) comes with a very powerful name, that’s what he is, he’s been a great kid.

“There’s not been a single problem to make decisions and take things forward. He’s been criticized at times because of what he is, but that’s not right. My experience with Jay and Arun (Dhumal, BCCI secretary) has been phenomenal,” the 48-year-old added.

The BCCI had taken a back seat for three years after the Supreme Court ruling to implement Lodha Committee reforms into the cricket board. In the interim, Committee of Administrators (CoA) led by Vinod Rai handled the administrative matters of the board.

“It’s not a tough position. If you have your intentions on the right track, it’s not tough because BCCI is a well-organised body.

“Three years with CoA, a lot of issues there. Everyone works hard, work well, they love their job. There’s pressure, but there’s pressure everyone.

“We did the Pink ball Test (against Bangladesh) which went on superbly, the way the office has been run, the games have gone on, additions in first-class cricket, the DRS has come in, it’s been brilliant,” Sourav Ganguly, who represented India in 113 Tests and 311 ODIs, said.

Asked how the sudden turnaround came about which brought his appointment as BCCI president, Sourav Ganguly said, “There was no plan, there was nothing happening. I did not know till 10.30 that night when I got picked. Everyone decided I will be President; there was no election; it was a unanimous decision.

“That’s the only time I knew. When I was going for dinner, I was asked who would be president, I said Brijesh Patel. At 10.30 pm, everyone got together and said Sourav is president, Jay is secretary, Arun is treasurer, and Jayesh George is Hon. secretary and vice-president,” he added.