“This is a Bengali who has betrayed our Bengali icon” - Ex-director reveals stunning tale of KKR not bidding for Sourav Ganguly in IPL 2011

Former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) director Joy Bhattacharjya revealed a stunning tale involving Sourav Ganguly during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2011 auction.

Sourav Ganguly played three seasons for KKR from 2008 to 2010. During this time, the franchise failed to make the playoffs even once. Notably, Ganguly led the side in two out of these three seasons. Ahead of the 2011 season, during the auction, KKR did not bid for the former Indian skipper.

Joy Bhattacharjya recalled how he was instantly flooded with messages as the franchise did not bid for Ganguly during the IPL 2011 auction. Joy added that he was called a 'Bengali who betrayed a Bengali icon.'

"When Sourav Ganguly was not bid for, within five minutes I got 400 messages on my phone. There was somebody who put on all groups saying, 'This is a Bengali who has betrayed our Bengali icon Sourav Ganguly, please tell him what we think of him,'" he said on 'A Century of Stories' podcast (via NDTV Sports).

Joy further highlighted the extent of the incident, following which he asked his father to take down the address board of their house.

"It reached a stage where I had to turn around and tell my dad that perhaps he should take down our address board from his house in Salt Lake," he added.

Joy also revealed how Shah Rukh Khan, KKR co-owner, CEO Venky Mysore, and then coach Dav Whatmore were all involved in the decision.

"Shah Rukh first distanced himself. He said, 'If you want Sourav, keep Sourav. If you don't want him, your call. Dav Whatmore was the coach, I was there, Venky Mysore the CEO was there," he said.

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KKR's move for Gautam Gambhir over Sourav Ganguly paid off

While KKR opted not to go for Sourav Ganguly during the IPL 2011 auction, the franchise instead placed a winning bid of ₹11 crore for Gautam Gambhir.

The former Indian cricketer's inclusion proved to be the right move indeed as he led KKR to their first IPL title in 2012. Further, he captained the team during their victorious campaign in 2014 as well, helping KKR win their second title.

They became one of the most successful teams in the history of the league under his captaincy. Therefore, the move to go for Gambhir over Ganguly back at the time eventually did wonders for Kolkata.