Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni are two of the most successful Indian captains who were born a day apart. MS celebrates his birthday on 7th July, while Ganguly cuts his cake on 8th July.
The architect of India’s dream Team Sourav Ganguly successfully managed to build a strong base for the Indian side. His dream team included Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh, Ashish Nehra, Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh, and his successor MS Dhoni himself.
Speaking of a successor, Sachin Tendulkar who had a forgettable tenure as a captain, and a couple of low-key series later, he decided to step down to focus on his batting. Tendulkar and Ganguly have played together since their U-15 days and know each other more than anyone.
Hence, on the eve of Dada’s birthday, the master blaster revealed why he suggested Sourav’s name to become India’s vice-captain.
He revealed, “Before stepping down, during India’s tour of Australia in which I was the captain, I had suggested Sourav be the team’s vice-captain.”
He added, “I had seen him from close quarters, played cricket with him, and knew he had the right qualities to take Indian cricket forward. He was a good leader. I, therefore, recommended his name. Sourav never looked back and what he has achieved for India is out there for all of us to see,”
In an interview with PTI, Sachin revealed, “Sourav was a great captain. He knew how to maintain a balance – between giving freedom to the players and giving them certain responsibilities,”
“When he took over, Indian cricket was in a transition phase. We needed the next bunch of players who could set a platform for propelling India forward.”