A senior Pakistani journalist was recently shocked by social media vitriol when he shared two pictures, one of ex-India captain Sourav Ganguly and another of current Pakistani cricketer Imam ul Haq. The journalist asked his or her fans to decide between the two as to who was the better player between them. This comparison elicited a lot of criticism from the fans of cricket, who were so quick to condemn the journalist for daring to compare the great Ganguly to a relatively green Imam.
Consequentially, there was an almost equal and opposite reaction to the event. Twitter erupted with anger owing to the specific figures being strikingly different, with Ganguly being much more of an awe-inspiring legend than Imam. This paper seeks to analyze how the South Asian mascot and one of India’s most popular cricket captains, Sourav Ganguly, also popularly known as ‘Dada,’ fits into this category.
Some of his cricket credentials include 113 Tests and 311 one-day international appearances, along with more than 18,000 international runs. On the other hand, Imam-ul-Haq, a 28-year-old cricketer, was not so consistent and talented while playing international cricket. He has played 24 Test matches, 72 one-day internationals, and only two T20 matches, and he has scored less than 5000 international cricket runs in his career.
The Rise of Ganguly and His Superman of Batting
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One has to accept that Ganguly has made incredible runs in Indian cricket. Sourav Ganguly was the stand-alone skipper of India between 2000 and 2005 and was instrumental in shocking the Indian cricket team’s performance both on and off the field. As captain, he shares powerful years with his team, and he brings positive change to the operation of the team by being optimistic.
Perhaps the most significant feat was helping India’s cricket team progress to the finals of the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup. Also, during his leadership, India triumphed in one day’s NatWest Trophy in 2002, which was also famous for Ganguly’s T-shirt waving style at Lord’s. Ganguly also succeeded in endearing his efforts by not only focusing on winning matches but also developing youthful talents and growing a strong team. He identified and nurtured talented players on the Indian team, such as Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh, and Harbhajan Singh, who turned out to be very crucial for the Indian team in the future.
Under Ganguly’s leadership, the focus turned towards the solidity of the team spirit, and the spirit of determination and victory was provided to the players. Though his style was a success not only in the immediate future but also in the long term, it encouraged complete Indian cricket dominance. On the other hand, Imam-ul-Haq, although he too has potential, comes into the picture with little international experience. His bowling has been quite good, but he still has not carved out an identity as a match-winning all-rounder for Pakistan. The parity with Ganguly, whom many consider to have a set template, seemed preposterous to many cricket followers.
The journalist who tried to start the comparison between Ganguly and Imam represents the beautiful culture of cricket and the legends it has given cricket lovers for decades. This implies strengthening the notion of acknowledging the hardworking players who have played a crucial role in the sport. Given these facts, comparing Ganguly with a less experienced player is quite unfair, as his impact on Indian cricket is apparent, having left a mark in the way he played and led the Indian cricket team.
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