'Before that, India were intimidated by us': Brad Hogg narrates how Sourav Ganguly 'rubbed Australia the wrong way'

Former Australia spinner Brad Hogg spoke highly of Sourav Ganguly and feels the former captain deserves credit for changing the face of Indian cricket and bringing about a transition.

During his time as skipper, Sourav Ganguly became a trendsetter in Indian cricket. Back when he was appointed captain of the team in 2000 in one of its lowest phases, Ganguly took charge of the team and lifted it out of the abyss as he inflicted a sense of self-belief and positivity in the team. His 'in-your-face' attitude meant that India were no longer pushovers, and the results were evident as his team started winning more matches abroad as compared to earlier.

Sourav Ganguly (R) and Ricky Ponting have a chat during a match in 2004. (Getty Images)

Under Ganguly, India beat the mighty Australia at home in 2001, still regarded as one of the best Test series ever played. With that, a new trend emerged in Indian cricket, which saw the players not backing down from any challenge or situation. India began beating Australia more than ever before and Ganguly was at the forefront of it. In between, Ganguly would not let any opportunity slip to get under Australia's skin – the famous incident of him making Steve Waugh wait at the toss is a testament to it.

Former Australia spinner Brad Hogg spoke highly of Ganguly and feels the former captain deserves credit for changing the face of Indian cricket and bringing about a transition. Besides the 2001 Test series win, India registered a few more emphatic performances against Australia, such as eliminating them from the 2000 Champions Trophy and drawing the 2003/04 Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under.

"The one thing that Ganguly did was really test Australia. If you remember that Test match where he made Steve Waugh wait – I think he did not come with his blazer for the toss – he just knew what would rub Australia up the wrong way in that sense," Hogg told former England bowler Steve Harmison on his YouTube Show 'The Test of Time'.

"I think during that particular time, when we went over there, before that, India were intimidated by us, and it wasn’t until Ganguly came in and started to stand up and fight back and give us the verbal, sort of upset us and get under our skin that things really turned around."

Hogg, who had the wood over Ganguly in India's 2007 tour of Australia where he dismissed the former batsman four times in the Test series, pointed out how Ganguly's arrival as captain added more excitement and competitiveness to India-Australia matches.

"The contests between India and Australia started to be like England and Australia. There was a lot of noise, passion, and Ganguly was the one who turned it around and created that atmosphere and created that strength and different brand of cricket that India are playing now," the former spinner explained.