I was almost eight years old. I remember watching the Indian team hanging their face in shame. The team was pulled down by fixing scandal. As Rachel from Friends series would describe- There was rock bottom, fifty feet of crap and then the team India.
Ganguly took over. He built the team. The players. He made the players believe in themselves. He took care of the players like nobody did. He knew what he wanted, he achieved. The records lie. The numbers lie. What he did to team India is beyond numbers. He made sure to make India smile again, fans to believe again. They did. He made sure to give it back to his opponents who mocked the team. He made to compete with every single champion out there. He made sure to put India on top no matter what it took.
I grew up watching them all. I grew up with the Indian team that did wonders. Of course, India currently is one of the best teams now but it wasn’t the case in the 90s and early 2000s. Growing up with that India and the leader like Ganguly was everything for me.
He was the king. Undisputed leader.
Today, after years, he is back. He is here to rule the team India once again. He is here to bring the glory back to the BCCI. During this short stint even if he doesn’t leave a legacy, I’m sure he will bring in aggressive changes, something he is known for. Maybe, he wanted to tell people that nothing has changed or maybe he wanted to ask people, ‘remember me, remember this blazer?’
While he relived the moment of wearing the blazer, a lot of memories hits the mind in a flash. Ah, how much I missed you, Dada. How much I missed you seeing in the Indian jersey.
I absolutely loved the way he responded to the press today. Also, I badly wish there were questions and discussions about women’s cricket as well. Though there wasn’t in one, Dada included “women’s cricket” in his speech once. I’m not sure whether I’m happy or sad about this fact.
I hope he does look into women’s cricket seriously because they deserve it too.
Shame on Ntini’s teammates: Darren Sammy