Soumya Sarkar Reveals That He Started Batting Left-Handed To Emulate His 'Childhood Hero' Sourav Ganguly

Bangladesh batsman Soumya Sarkar has revealed that former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly was his first cricketing hero.

The 27-year-old batting all-rounder revealed that he was hooked by Ganguly’s elegance and the way in which the left-hander used to come down the track and hit spinners for monstrous sixes.

Soumya Sarkar also revealed that he isn’t a natural left-hander, and he only started batting left-hander following his brother’s words that he’ll one day become like Sourav Ganguly.

“My life’s first cricket hero was Sourav Ganguly. I was a fan of him even before I understood cricket fully. One day my brother said, ‘You will be a left-handed batsman like Ganguly and bowl right-arm medium pace’. I’m not a natural left-hander, I started it after my brother’s advice. Except batting, I do all my work with the right-hand,” Soumya Sarkar told bdnews24.

He added: “I used to watch Sourav play on TV along with my brother. That time, an India-Pakistan game had a separate fanbase. While growing up, I became a fan of his cover-drive. And hitting the spinners by stepping out was incredible,”

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Soumya Sarkar on meeting Sourav Ganguly for the first times and on idolizing Yuvraj Singh

Sarkar visited Kolkata as part of the Bangladesh U-16 team and he admitted of being awestruck when he met his childhood idol, Sourav Ganguly, for the very first time.

“Later he continued to do well as a captain. I visited Kolkata for the Bangladesh U-16 team and saw Saurabh face to face for the first time. He was right in front. I wanted to talk. But I could not say anything. I just stared in amazement. ” Sarkar revealed.

Soumya Sarkar was then hooked to the flamboyance of Yuvraj Singh during his formative years. The left-hander wishes to emulate Yuvraj’s style and the manner in which he used to destroy the opposition bowlers.

“After growing up, Yuvraj Singh became my favorite cricketer. I loved his aggressive style of batting from the word go. He used to change the course of the game pretty quickly. He didn’t spare anyone and was fearless. Even I wish to play like him,” Sarkar added.

The 27-year-old, who made his debut in 2014, has Soumya Sarkar, who made his international debut in 2014, has played 15 Tests, 55 ODIs and 50 T20Is for Bangladesh, in which he has racked up 3431 runs with the help of three hundred.

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