E-Paper
Dada faces the heat
His fans call him Maharaj. But the Indian captain's crown is fast slipping from his head.
To his team-mates, Sourav Ganguly is simply "Dada", or big brother. His fans call him "Maharaj", or king.
But the Indian captain's crown is fast slipping from his head. Struggling with his own game, he appears to be finding it increasingly hard to inspire his team-mates.
The 32-year-old, at the helm for almost five years, is India's most successful captain. Of his 19 Test wins, nine have come overseas. In the 68 years before he took over, the team had won a mere 13 matches abroad.
Even the staunchest admirers of his aggressive style of leadership, however, are starting to wonder if Ganguly the batsman is still worth a place in the team.
A man who started his career with a cover drive to die for and a century on his debut at Lord's, Ganguly has played 81 matches, scoring 4,946 runs at an average of 41.56 with 11 hundreds.
In recent seasons, however, he has looked less the part.
Even when scoring a century at Headingley and a 99 at Trent Bridge during India's tour of England in 2002, one of his best seasons, he was scratchy.
His problem against short bowling is well documented and though Ganguly is not short on determination he has not been able to master how to hook, pull, or duck himself out of trouble against the rising ball.
LAZY ATTITUDE
There has also been increasing comment over his poor fielding and lazy attitude towards fitness.
Indian supporters have always respected Ganguly but never really taken him to their hearts. Even at the best of times, Ganguly does not have an endearing personality. To people who do not know him well, he comes across as brash and abrasive, often stereotyped as a rich man prone to tantrums.
At Lancashire, where he played the English county season five years ago, his team mates found his so arrogant that they named him "Lord Snooty".
But there is no taking away from what he has achieved for India.
