7 Glorious Moments of Dada’s Career Which Prove Why He is Called the Maharaja of Indian Cricket

When it comes to Sourav Ganguly, we have a long memory lane to go through. There has never been a cricketer like him and I’m sure there will never be one like him. His fighting spirit, his never-say-die attitude and his long list of accomplishments make him stand out in the ground. Yes, you can say that he isn’t modest, but he is brave and transparent. 

Dada is definitely a man of his words! When he says something, there can’t be a shadow of a doubt whether he means it or not. Perhaps his personality can be summed up in Rahul Dravid’s words -  “On the offside, first there is god then there is Ganguly.” One of the most successful Indian captain and now the president of BCCI, our Dada is truly a legend. 

So, let’s take a trip down the memory lane and have a look over some of the glorious moments of his career.

1. Lord’s Balcony in 2002

Definitely one of the most iconic moments for both Dada and Indian cricket fans! An improbable chase of 326 at Lord’s made Dada a cult-hero. This was one of the most memorable wins of the 2000s.

2. A Phenomenal Century Against Australia 

Way back then, making a century was not that easy and scoring it in Australia’s own backyard was even more difficult. In 2003-04, when India was struggling at 62-3, Ganguly stood tall and played a sublime knock of 144. This helped India in taking the lead in the series. 

3. Team is Everything for Him

In 2001, Ganguly turned up late for the toss in an ODI series against Australia and later he made a statement that this was done to pay back t12he Australians, whose coach John Buchanan was being impolite to one of India’s players.

4. Test Debut with a Century

In 1996, Dada made a memorable test debut by his smooth-flowing strokes through the offside against England. He became the only 10th Indian to score a century on test debut by making 131 runs. It was a small stepping stone for what turned out to be over a decade of Dadagiri.

5. The King of Toronto 

In 1997, India and Pakistan contested for the annual Sahara Cup in Toronto. Everyone was struggling with the chilly weather of Toronto, but he excelled by scoring 222 runs and bagging 4 consecutive man-of-the-match awards. 

6. Independence Cup Victory

At Dhaka, it was the third final of the Silver Jubilee Independence Cup and India sealed the game with the help of Dada. He batted throughout till 43rd over and scored an inspiring 124. It was then the highest run-chase in ODI history.

7. The Comeback Knock

When everybody was thinking about Dada’s retirement, he was thinking about his other plans. He wasn’t happy with the fact that his last ever innings for India would read as just a 34 in tricky Karachi conditions in February 2006. He then made a memorable comeback into the Indian fold and announced his rebirth on the international stage with an unbeaten 51 against South Africa at Jo’burg. 
And this was followed by two remarkable years of his cricket career before he announced his retirement in the year 2008. 

He stepped up when Indian cricket needed him the most and changed its face for generations to come. A king of comebacks, our Dada is a true legend!