Ganguly the significant, not the great
Ever since he announced his retirement, Sourav Ganguly has been elevated to greatness, but the fact is he gained by association, writes Suresh Menon in Tehelka magazine.
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
Ever since he announced his retirement, Sourav Ganguly has been elevated to greatness, but the fact is he gained by association, writes Suresh Menon in Tehelka magazine.
If Sachin Tendulkar had to be brought down a couple of notches to fit him into the so-called ‘Fab Four’ group, then Ganguly had to be pushed up a couple to settle alongside Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman. Ganguly was not a great player, but he was a significant one in the context of Indian cricket as its most successful Test captain. Great players are not necessarily significant, nor significant players necessarily great. Barry Richards is an example of the former while Arjuna Ranatunga is an obvious example of the latter.
Nishi Narayanan is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo