India’s dream Test XI Under Sourav Ganguly

Dec 13, 2017 at 8:20 PM

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India’s dream Test XI Under Sourav Ganguly

The history of a cricketing nation is divided into multiple eras. Each era is marked by a change of guard as a new leader takes over the realms of captaincy and tries to get the best out of a core group of players who form the nucleus of the side. A new leader ushers in a new approach and style to lead his men with a common objective to win games for his country.

With the turn of the century, Sourav Ganguly took over the mantle of Indian cricket from Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s long-standing skipper of the 90’s. Sourav Ganguly brought about a paradigm shift in how India played their test cricket. India played their cricket with a new found resolve and self-belief. Ganguly instilled a sense of resilience and aggressiveness to take on the best test sides of that time. The Indians improved upon their dismal overseas record by registering impressive test victories over formidable oppositions in their own backyard.

Ganguly was quite the opposite to his illustrious predecessor Azhar in his leadership style and persona. While Azhar was calm and composed in his demeanor, Ganguly was quite the expressive bloke, both in victory and defeat. If Azhar made India into a fortress at home, Ganguly made them into the combative unit in overseas conditions.

Ganguly had an eye for young spotting talent and backed them to the hilt. The likes of Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra and Mohammad Kaif all blossomed into world class cricketers under Ganguly’s mentorship. Much of Ganguly’s success has to be largely attributed to Kiwi coach John Wright, with whom he forged a brilliant partnership. John played the perfect foil to ‘Dada’ as his cricketing acumen with Ganguly’s natural instinctive leadership proved to be a potent think tank.

The combination was instrumental in developing match winning tactics for the ‘Men in Blue’ and the results were there to show as Ganguly become one of the most successful Test captains of India. But as the famous cricket quote goes ‘A captain is as good as his team’. So Ganguly was lucky to have a plethora of cricketing greats under his command.

The batting line-up hailed as the ‘Fab Five’ was perhaps the strongest India ever had in their test history. Sehwag the ‘Slayer’, Dravid the rock solid ‘Wall’, Sachin the prolific batting maestro, Laxman the elegant stroke maker and Dada himself as the ‘Lord of the Offside’. He had a potent spin attack in Kumble and ‘Bhajji’ and had the luxury of fine swing bowlers who were lethal on overseas conditions.

So let us look at the best Test eleven which played for India under Ganguly’s captaincy (October 2000 to 2005)

For selecting my team, I have taken the period of October 2000-2005 as the same time frame corresponds to Ganguly’s captaincy. I have only considered those players for selection who played at least ten test matches during that era and made a significant impact by delivering consistent performances with bat or ball.

 

1. VIRENDER SEHWAG – VIRU

Virender Sehwag was arguably India’s greatest match winner with the bat in the history of Indian test cricket. Sehwag was perhaps the most destructive opening batsman in the modern era of test cricket. An attacking opener, Sehwag redefined the way openers played test cricket. He had a very simple and well-organized technique, brilliant hand-eye coordination and sublime timing which were the key ingredients for him to unleash an array of destructive strokes.

India won many test match on the back of Sehwag’s spectacular knocks which were laced with boundaries and sixes. ‘Viru’ simply took the game away from the opposition by decimating attacks all over the world with his brutal yet eye-catching stroke play. What made Sehwag even more special was his ability to score consistently at the highest level given the pace at which he batted.

Test Record: Oct 2000-2005
Matches – 36 Runs – 3181 Average – 55.80 100’s – 10 50’s – 9

2. GAUTAM GAMBHIR – GAUTI

Gautam Gambhir was an aggressive opener with a natural instinct to dominate bowlers. Gambhir forged a formidable opening pair with fellow Delhi team-mate Virender Sehwag in test cricket. After trying out a series of makeshift opening combinations, the Indians finally had a stable opening combination at the top of the order who provided the team with solid starts on a consistent basis.

Not as elegant as some of the other southpaws, Gambhir made up with his solid and compact technique. Gambhir had some prolific seasons in test cricket and had a unique record of scoring eleven consecutive half centuries in test cricket.

Test Record: 2000-2005
Matches – 10 Runs – 630 Average – 45.00 100’s – 1 50’s- 3

3. RAHUL DRAVID – JAMMY

Rahul Dravid was India’s most consistent and dependable batsman of his era. Dravid was technically very sound and had a rock solid temperament. Dravid was dodged in his defence and wore down attack with his high powers of concentration. His grit, resolve, and character made him an accomplished test batsman in the seamer friendly overseas conditions.

Dravid earned the nickname “Wall” by becoming the lynchpin of the middle order in Ganguly’s team. He was a master at accumulating runs with amazing consistency. Unfortunately all through his career, he remained overshadowed by his more illustrious counterpart Sachin Tendulkar. Nevertheless, Dravid’s name shall be etched in the history of Indian cricket for his selfless service to the national side. An extremely fit cricketer courtesy his hard training regimen, he was a great close-in fielder with good reflexes and a safe pair of hands.

Test Record: Oct 2000-  2005
Matches – 51 Runs – 4549 Average –  62.31 100’s – 12 50’s  -21


4. SACHIN TENDULKAR – TENDLYA

Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar reached the zenith of his glittering career under Ganguly’s captaincy. Sachin became India’s run scoring machine under Dada’s leadership. His batting had all the hallmarks of a great player. Perfect balance, sublime timing, great repertoire of shots and the ability to play the ball late made him a class apart from the rest. Sachin was brilliant with his belligerent strokeplay but could be solid in defence too. He had a penchant for scoring hundreds consistently.

His batting heroics turned him into a living legend for Indian fans, who worshiped him as a demi-god. Sachin was quite handy will his deceptive leg breaks which he jumbled up with a bagful of tricks. The Little Master showcased supreme commitment in his fielding too.

Test Record: Oct 2000 – 2005
Matches – 44 Runs – 3718 Average – 57.20 100s – 10 50s – 17

5. VVS LAXMAN – VERY VERY SPECIAL

VVS Laxman was one of the pleasing batsmen to watch in test cricket. Laxman was the heir apparent to Indian skipper Mohammed Azharuddin, as the two Hyderabadi created a niche for themselves with their wristy stroke play. Exquisite timing and silken touches were the hallmarks of his batting. He soon became the backbone of the Indian lower middle order.

Laxman saved his best knocks against the mighty Australian team of that era. VVS played some career defying knocks to take India out from the jaws of defeat by stringing partnerships with the tail-enders down the order. Besides his batting credentials, Laxman was a good slip fielder too.

Test Record: Oct 2000-2005

Matches – 47  Runs – 3275  Average – 51.17   100’s – 7  50’s  –  17

6. SAURAV GANGULY  – DADA

Hailed as the ‘Prince of Kolkata’,  Sourav Ganguly had a touch of class and panache about his batting. Ganguly looked regal with his exquisite stroke play through the off-side. Ganguly was blessed with sublime timings which helped him caress the ball through the covers. Ganguly was a fighter of a character and overcame adversity on many occasions. However, more than his batting, his captaincy would place him among all-time greats of Indian cricket.

A born leader, Ganguly transformed the Indian test unit into a formidable unit. A man who was known to speak his mind got the best out of his players. ‘Dada’ led by example with his motivational leadership and instilling a winning attitude in his players to fight till the very last.

The man with the ‘Golden Arm’ was an ideal partnership breaker with his medium pacers on seamer friendly conditions.

Test Record: Oct 2000-2005
Matches-  46 Runs – 2355 Avg – 36.23 100’s -5 50’s – 11

7. PARTHIV PATEL

Parthiv Patel donned the wicket-keeping gloves for India in an era sandwiched between two great gloves-men, Nayan Mongia and Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Patel was an acrobatic keeper as he took some spectacular catches behind the stumps.

Patel though small in stature had a heart of a lion. The baby-faced wicket-keeper batsman was a pocket dynamite as he could score runs off quality bowling on some really tough tracks.

Test Record: Oct 2000-2005
Matches – 19 Runs – 669 Average – 31.85 100’s – 0 50’s – 4

8. IRFAN PATHAN

Baroda’s handsome looking seamer Pathan created waves with his swing bowling when he came onto the international scene. The left-arm seamer was lethal with the late swing he got with his deliveries. Pathan created havoc for the best batting line-ups on seaming wicket by getting the ball to shape away viciously. His finest display of bowling was against arch rivals Pakistan when he claimed a hayrick.

Pathan was handy a lower batsman who chipped in with valuable runs. Perhaps an over-ambitious drive by the team management of turning him into an all-rounder doomed the career of one of the finest swing bowlers to play for India.

Test Record: Oct 2000-2005
Matches – 15 Wickets – 66 Bowling Avg. – 26.15  Eco – 3.18 Strike Rate – 49.2

9. HARBHAJAN SINGH – BHAJJI

Harbhajan Singh played the perfect foil to Anil Kumble all through the 90s. Under Ganguly’s captaincy, Harbhajan was India’s frontline off-spinner. ‘Bhajji’ could extract a lot of bounce on his off spinners. He mixed up his deliveries pretty well and disguised the batsmen with his ‘Doosra’.

The ‘Turbanator’ had the knack of picking up wickets in a heap and often ran through touring sides . Harbhajan more often than not proved to be the nemesis of the mighty Aussies when they toured the subcontinent. He could entertain with the bat too by scoring some quick fire runs down the order.

Test Record: Oct 2000-2005
Matches – 39  Wickets – 184   Bowling Avg. – 27.08  Eco.- 2.71  Strike Rate – 59.9

10. ANIL KUMBLE – JUMBO

Anil Kumble was India’s greatest match winner with the ball. The Karnataka leggie wasn’t a big turner of the ball but had subtle variations up his sleeve to bamboozle the best of batsman. Kumble bowled his flippers at the brisk pace which hurried onto the batsman.

Kumble used the googly as a deceptive weapon to outfox top class batsmen. Kumble was India’s strike weapon on spin friendly home conditions as he ran through batting lineups of visiting sides on a consistent basis. A good reader of the game, Kumble was second in command to Ganguly for most of that era. In a nutshell, Anil was a very competitive cricketer who played the game with full commitment and passion.

Test Record: Oct 2000-2005
Matches – 36  Wickets- 189   Bowling Avg. – 28.95  Eco.- 2.84  Strike Rate – 61

11. ZAHEER KHAN – ZAK

Zaheer Khan took over as India’s frontline seamer from ace pace spearhead Javagal Srinath. Khan would go down as the finest left-arm seamer our country has ever produced. Khan started off as an express pace bowler but gradually matured into one of the finest swing bowlers of his time.

Khan had a fruitful stint in county cricket which helped him hone his skills at fast bowling. Khan mastered the craft of swinging the ball both ways which made him a potent force in overseas condition. It was commendable for Khan to become the first Indian seamer to get into the 300 test wickets club.

Test Record: Oct 2000 – 2005

Matches – 36  Wickets – 189   Bowling Avg. – 28.95  Eco.- 2.84  Strike Rate – 61

12th Man – 

YUVRAJ SINGH – YUVI

Yuvraj Singh was one of India’s most elegant batsman. Gifted with immense talent, the left-hander was a free flowing stroke maker. His batting has a sense of class with his sublime timing and clean hitting. He had a high back lift which gave him the required arc to hit some lusty boundaries. An outright match winner on his day, Yuvraj could win a game on his own courtesy his scintillating stroke play.

Yuvi was a handy slow arm bowler who altered his pace and flight to fox batsman. An outstanding fielder, Yuvraj was a live wire on the field with his spectacular ground fielding and accurate throwing. Despite his talent, he could never settle down into the test team as his test career was plagued by below par performances and inconsistencies.

Bench Strength – 

Aakash Chopra was a dependable opener with a solid defence and sound technique to see off the new ball. He played his role to perfection whenever he got a look into the side. The other notable top order batsman of that era was Sadagopan Ramesh whose batting was based on timing and hand-eye coordination with hardly any footwork.

Dinesh Kartik and Deep Das Gupta were India’s reserve wicketkeeper who made the side on a couple of occasions.

The Indian team had promising pacers in Ashish Nehra, Munaf Patel and L Balaji who made sporadic appearances into the national team owing to their inconsistencies and fitness issues. Meanwhile, Ajit Agarkar was generally overlooked for tests as he was deemed to be more of one day specialist.

Hope you liked my Dream Test Eleven of the Ganguly’s era  and would draw a consensus with most of the players that made the cut.

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