Sourav Ganguly Asserts He Never Lost His Confidence After Getting Dropped From The Side In 2005

Sourav Ganguly, former Indian captain and the current president of the BCCI, recently opened up on his controversial axing from the national side back in 2005; one that not only left him but also the entire country shellshocked.

Ganguly was not only stripped of his leadership duties but also dropped from the India team following the Zimbabwe tour in August 05 after then-coach Greg Chappell sent out an e-mail to the BCCI that the southpaw wasn’t physically and mentally fit to lead the side.

Ganguly said that never lost any confidence when he was dropped as he has faced and scored runs against the best bowlers in the world, something he knew he would do again if given an opportunity.

*I didn’t lose confidence. I knew I’ll score runs if they play me. My coach didn’t go out in the middle to play Wasim, McGrath, and Shoaib, I did that and managed to score runs against them. If I had done that successfully for 10 years then I can do that again provided if get the opportunity,” said Ganguly to Bangla daily Sangbad Pratidin.

“I don’t want to blame Greg Chappell alone”- Sourav Ganguly

Sourav Ganguly accepted that the axing from the team and the manner in which it was done left him upset but he never lost his confidence for a second.

“Yes, I was very upset when was I dropped from the side but never lost confidence, not even for a second,” added Ganguly.

He also said that Greg Chappell was the main orchestrator behind him getting sacked and dropped, he wouldn’t place the entire blame on the Australian’s shoulder.

“I don’t want to blame Greg Chappell alone. There is no doubt about the fact that he was the one who started it. He suddenly sends an email against me to the board which gets leaked too. Does something like this happen? A cricket team is like a family. There can differences of opinion, misunderstandings in the family but that should be sorted out with dialogue. You are the coach, if you believed that I should play in a certain manner then come and tell me. When I returned as a player he had specified the same things then why not earlier?” said Ganguly.

Sourav Ganguly made a triumphant comeback a year later during the tour of South Africa where he went on to regain his place in both Test and ODI teams courtesy gritty performances in the Tests.

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