Can Ganguly turn eleven Indians into an Indian XI?

The expectations on Indian cricket and cricketers are high and the pressure of leading India takes it toll. The latest victim is Sachin Tendulkar and this yet again plunged Indian cricket into a crisis. It all began with the dumping of Azharuddin after the World Cup and the appointment of Sachin Tendulkar as captain and Kapil Dev as coach. And now the torch is being handed over to Sourav Ganguly.

With Tendulkar and Kapil Dev at the helm of affairs, one was hopeful that they would bring about a resurgence. Unfortunately, those involved in running the game - the Board, captain and the coach - were involved in lots of politicking both on and off the field. The 'little genius' felt the pressure of captaincy not on the field but mostly off the field, which he couldn't handle and resigned.

It is in this situation that the `Prince of Calcutta' has been crowned. He takes over a throne not of roses but of thorns. One really wonders whether the quiet aura of confidence that Ganguly exudes in the middle will not be affected by the various pushes and pulls that he will have to contend with in the hot seat. And the other question is whether it will affect his approach to batting which has always been positive.

Ganguly has certainly made the right noises so far. He has made known his feelings that the team management should have a greater say in selection. And he gives the impression that he is not going to take the behind the scenes machinations of the board lying down. But Ganguly should also be wary of not getting preoccupied with non cricketing issues and focus solely on fighting his battles on the playing field.

Coming from a state which has been successful in running coalition politics for over 25 years, the 'Bengal Tiger' can take a leaf out of that experience while trying to handle the various factions in Indian cricket with finesse. If in the 60's it needed a 'Nawab', now it's the turn of a 'Prince' to motivate eleven Indians into playing as an Indian XI.