Sourav Ganguly's 10 best knocks in international cricket

#6 128 vs England, Headingley, August 22-26, 2002

Ganguly scored a magnificent 128 against England at Headingley, Leeds in 2002

From one memorable victory, we move on to another memorable victory, this one coming in the longest version of the game. In the 4-match Test series that followed the tri-series during India’s tour to England in 2002, the home side had won the first Test at Lord’s by 170 runs. It was in this context that the series-levelling third Test victory at Headingley, Leeds, is known as one of the most famous Indian victories on foreign soil. Batting first after winning the toss, India put on an absolute run-fest, plundering the English bowlers for two and a half days, and finishing their first innings at 628/8 declared.The architects of this magnanimous total were Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and the captain, Ganguly, who hit patient, yet aggressive Test centuries to break the spirits of the English cricketers.

When Dravid departed on the second day of the Test after making 148 and sharing a 150-run partnership with Tendulkar for the 3rd wicket, Ganguly walked in with the scorecard reading 335/3. That score, and the flaccid surface at Leeds were enough to encourage the left-hander to go all guns blazing and launch a fresh attack on the already tired English troops. A 249-run partnership ensued between Ganguly and Tendulkar, during which the Calcutta-born cricketer scored 128 runs to further demoralise the English bowling attack that contained the likes of Darren Gough, Andrew Caddick, Andrew Flintoff and Ashley Giles. Tendulkar fell just 7 runs short of a double hundred, as he was dismissed for 193 shortly after Ganguly’s dismissal. In reply, England could manage 273 and 309 from their two innings and lost the match by an innings and 46 runs.