Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly is celebrating his 50th birthday on Friday (July 8). The legendary cricketer is currently serving as the president of the BCCI. Ganguly took charge of the board in 2019 and has been praised for his work as the BCCI president.
Ganguly finished his career as one of India’s all-time greats. He not excelled as a batsman but also left his mark as a captain. He made his debut for India in 1992 but his career finally took off in 1996 when he scored a century on his Test debut against England at the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground.
Ganguly did not look back after that milestone in his career. He soon became an indispensable part of the team across formats. In 2000, he was named the captain of the Indian team after the match fixing scandal and Ganguly went on to justify the faith shown in him.
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The former captain began his captaincy career by leading India to a series win over South Africa in an ODI series before leading the team to the final of the 2000 ICC KnockOut Trophy. In the following year, he guided India to a memorable 2-1 victory in the home Test series against the all-conquering Australia. Two years later, Ganguly led Team India to the final of the 2003 World Cup.
Ganguly’s career was also marred by a huge controversy when he lost his place in the team in 2006 following a spat with the-then coach Greg Chappell. He eventually retired from international cricket in 2008. Before retiring, Ganguly played 113 Tests and 311 ODIs, scoring 7212 and 11363 runs with the help of 38 centuries and 107 half-centuries. He also picked up 132 wickets in international cricket.
When Sourav Ganguly schooled Mohammad Yousuf:
Throughout his career, Sourav Ganguly was known for his aggression and his tough attitude. No matter what the situation was or who the opposition was, Ganguly never shied away from challenging anyone.
And as Ganguly celebrates his 50th birthday, we are taking a look at one of the most famous incidents related to his career. The incident took place when during an ODI between India and Pakistan in 2005 where batsman Mohammad Yousuf, then known as Yousuf Youhana, faced Ganguly’s wrath.
It all began when the former Pakistan batsman was receiving treatment on the field. Yousuf also requested the umpires for a runner before Ganguly decided to give him a piece of his mind.
Resting his one arm on MS Dhoni’s shoulder, Ganguly did not hold back as he reminded Yousuf that he was wasting time. Ganguly was also seen talking to the umpire as he was furious with the time wasting. The former India skipper warned Yousuf that he did not want to be fined for slow over-rate as he said: “Mai teri baat nahi kar rha hu, mai apni baat kar rha hu. Tu rest le, mere ko problem nahi hai. Mere ko fine na kare bas. (I am not talking about you, I am talking about myself. You take rest, I have no problem with that. I just don’t want to be fined)”
Yousuf then said something to Ganguly before the latter said: “Mai tere ko aisa nahi bol rha hu ki tu jaan bujh kar kar rha hai. Time note karna bas kyuki marunga mai hi phir. (I am not saying you are doing this exactly. But note the time because I will have to pay the price)”
Here is a clip of the incident: