Sourav Ganguly’s incredible journey: From being a 'controversial' selection to BCCI President

Captain in command

Captain Sourav Ganguly holds the NatWest tri-series trophy aloft in 2002.

Ganguly took over as captain Indian cricket team during tumultuous times, at the height of the match-fixing saga. Tendulkar was unable to bear the pressure of the circumstances and resigned from captaincy with Indian cricket on the decline. However, Ganguly lifted the team out of morky waters, bringing together a bunch of talented youngsters who would go on to stamp their authority in world cricket.

Under Ganguly’s stewardship, India went on to beat one of the strongest ever Australian sides 2-1 at home in 2001, in what is regarded as one of the greatest Test series’ ever. India further went on to make the finals of the 2003 World Cup, which they went on to lose against Australia.

With Ganguly at the helm, India also started winning Tests abroad -- most notably holding Australia to a 1-1 series draw Down Under in 2003-04. Then, there was also that infamous shirtless celebration on Lord’s balcony after winning the 2002 NatWest tri-series final against England.

India also beat Pakistan in Pakistan in both the Tests and one-day series. He formed a memorable pairing with John Wright as coach although both did not see eye-to-eye on many issues. Ganguly’s captaincy saw a number of players evolve into genuine match-winners -- Virender Sehwag, VVS Laxman, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan and Mohammad Kaif among others.