Bengal cricket circles unfazed by criticism of Ganguly

The criticism of Saurav Ganguly by a section of the British media has not really bothered cricketers in Bengal. Most of them feel that it is a ploy by the British media to pick a target. National selector Ashok Malhotra however, feels that the controversy may have started because Ganguly is a bit of an introvert. "Most of the professionals that Lancashire have employed have been extroverts. Cricketers like Clive Lloyd and Wasim Akram. Maybe the media expected Sourav to behave in the same manner and since he did not, they started going against him," commented Malhotra.

However, Malhotra refused to believe that Ganguly lacked the approach of a professional. "I do not believe in the allegations that Ganguly has not been serious. He is too good a cricketer to allow his image to suffer," he said.

Former Indian opener Pankaj Roy feels that the media should have given Ganguly time to settle down. "He is a very good player and I do not believe in the allegations that have been raised by the British media. Even though I am too far away to comment on an incident like this, I can safely vouch for Ganguly's integrity." When pointed out that the British media had alleged that the Lancashire cricketers did not enjoy a good rapport with Ganguly, Roy said, "In recent times, I have seen Ganguly praising Andrew Flintoff profusely. He has done that because camaraderie exists. Usually, it is very difficult for one cricketer to praise another."

One of Ganguly's closest teammates has been the Bengal left arm spinner Utpal Chatterjee. He refused to believe that Ganguly is not a team man. "This is one allegation you cannot raise against Ganguly. Even now, he mixes freely with all the players in the Bengal dressing room. He is always very open to his teammates."

Ganguly's coach Debu Mitra also feels that the British press at times is partial. "Can you tell me other than Michael Atherton which other player in Lancashire has scored runs consistently this season. I spent a few days with Sourav recently. I found that he shared good vibes with all the Lancashire players, especially with players like Atherton and Flintoff. So the allegations are baseless."

Mitra also stated that the British media have a tendency to form controversial opinions about persons who are basically soft spoken in nature. "That is the main reason why they have picked on Sourav," he added.

Meanwhile, Ganguly, in a telephonic interview to a local daily in Calcutta has rubbished claims made by Bengal's No 1 film director of making a movie with the cricketer and his wife Dona playing the lead roles. "At the moment, my only focus is on cricket. I have no intention of going into acting. I do not have time for all that," was Ganguly's comment.