Hitting out at the previous Dilip Vengsarkar-led selection committee, Sourav Ganguly said he decided to retire to save himself from further humiliation of being treated as the "scarificial goat" all the time while others are spared.
"There is no point playing like this. I am not willing to play at their (selectors') mercy. They will pick you now and then dump you. Why should I be the sacrificial goat all the time? It was difficult to accept," Ganguly, who announced his retirement from international cricket on Tuesday, said.
"If a gun is held at your head, how far can you bear it. That too after playing 450 matches. I played badly in only one series. But others are not dropped. I have scored the highest number of runs after comeback," he was quoted as saying by Bengali daily 'Aaj Kaal'.
"How long would I have played? May be upto 2009. May be seven more tests. For that I was not prepared to take any more humiliation," he added.
Ganguly said being dropped from the Irani Trophy Rest of India squad by the selection panel led by Vengsarkar was the last nail in the coffin and he thought he had faced enough humilation by then.
{{/usCountry}}Ganguly said being dropped from the Irani Trophy Rest of India squad by the selection panel led by Vengsarkar was the last nail in the coffin and he thought he had faced enough humilation by then.
{{/usCountry}}"I never thought I will be out of the Irani team. I couldn't sleep for one month in anger, agony. Had this committee (new selection committee) come three years ago, things might have been different," said the 36-year-old left hander.