This regards a particular incident that occured in the ongoing test match series between India and Pakistan. Former India Captain, Saurav Ganguly, hit a double century against Pakistan. This is indeed time to celebrate, but this being India, it has to come with a backdrop. The backdrop being the standoff between Saurav Ganguly and Australian Greg Chappell, during Mr. Chappell's reign as Indian national coach.
The period from 2004 to 2007 was a turbulent period in Indian Cricket. Ganguly was apparently not in form, and Greg Chappell ultimately decided to strip him of the captaincy and drop him from the team. Protests by people in Ganguly's state of West Bengal protested, so much so that they decided to cheer for South Africa when they toured India. Any slip up by the team led to shouts from the public to bring back Ganguly.
Following the first round exit in the 2007 world cup, Chappell promptly resigned. Saurav Ganguly now enjoys the best form in more than a decade. Fans now are vindicated, and are now openly saying that Greg Chappell was responsible for destroying Ganguly's career. His comeback has labelled "The Return of the Emperor". Some online communities have called for openly humiliating Greg Chappell when possible.
What should it be interpted as? Two things are clearly evident. Many people are still stuck in the past. The another thing is that Ganguly's current form could be attributed to Greg Chappell!
The last point may evoke an outcry from Indians. The reasoning for the statement is quiet simple. Greg Chappell made him aware that he cannot take his place for granted. If performances are not coming, then it is about time that a break is needed. Ganguly prior to this had not been performing well for close to a year and a half.
Chappell's aggressiveness rubbed the wrong way for the Indian team and the public, who are by nature not aggressive in Sports. Chappell tried to get in aggressive mindset, and it backfired. This resulted in India being in constant scrutiny and ultimate exit in the first round. He came back stronger after the break. By the way, if one looks for partiality, no one highlighted the plight of Rahul Dravid and Ranadeb Bose. Dravid was dropped after performing badly in one series, while Ranadeb Bose has not even being considered inspite of good performances.
Dravid has taken it like a man, while Bose is naturally frustrated. Now, it will be interesting if Ganguly can perform the same way in Australia. Pitches in Australia are much more challenging than dead Subcontinent pitches. Nothing should be taken away from Ganguly though. He did perform, but I do wish that people stop remaining the past and give Greg Chappell some due.
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