Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Anna Hazare

http://100legends.blogspot.com/ i am legend 
Dr.Kisan Baburao Hazare, Marathi "किसान बाबुराव हजारे "popularly known as Anna Hazare (b. June 15, 1938), is an Indian social activist who is especially recognized for his contribution to the development of Ralegan Siddhi, a village in Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra, India and his efforts for establishing it as a model village, for which he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by Govt. of India, in 1992. On April 5, 2011, he has started a fast unto death to make a pressure on union government to enact Lokpal Bill a law on Lokpal that deals with corruption in public offices.


Arrest [1]

Anna Hazare was arrested in 1998 during Shiv Sena-BJP rule in Maharashtra when a defamation suit was filed against him by then Maharashtra Social Welfare minister Babanrao Golap of Shiv Sena. He was released following public uproar.

Lokpal Bill movement

The movement attracted attention very quickly through various media. It has been reported that thousands of people joined to support Mr. Hazare's effort. Almost 150 people are reported to join Mr. Hazare in his fast.[2]He said that he would not allow any politician to sit with him in this movement. Many social activists including Medha Patkar, Arvind Kejriwal and former IPS officer Kiran Bedi have lent their support to Hazare's hunger strike and anti-corruption campaign.

Fast until death (5th April 2011)

Anna Hazare started his "Fast until Death" at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi, stating "I will fast until Jan Lokpal Bill is passed"
Activists - Swami Ramdeo Baba, Swami Agnivesh with him in support.
Day 2 Response - Saharad Pawar offered to quit GoM reviewing the Janlokpal bill.

Difference between Govt. Proposal and Anna Hazare Version

Govt. Proposal

1. Lokpal will have no power to initiate suo moto action or receive complaints of corruption from the general public. It can only probe complaints forwarded by LS Speaker or RS Chairman.
2. Lokpal will only be an Advisory Body. Its part is only limited to forwarding its report to the "Competent Authority"
3. Lokpal will not have any police powers. It can not register FIRs or proceed with criminal investigations.
4. CBI and Lokpal will act have no connection with each other.
5. Punishment for corruption will be minimum 6 months and maximum up-to 7 years.

Hazare Version

1. Lokpal will have powers to initiate suo moto action or receive complaints of corruption from the general public.
2. Lokpal will be much more than an Advisory Body. It should be granted powers to initiate Prosecution against anyone found guilty.
3. Lokpal will have police powers. To say that it will be able to register FIRs.
4. Lokpal and anti corruption wing of CBI will be one Independent body.
5. The punishment should be minimum 5 years and maximum up-to life imprisonment.
This movement has also been joined by many people providing their suppport in Internet social media such as twitter and facebook. Many celebrities like Shekhar Kapur, Siddharth Narayan, Anupam Kher, Madhur Bhandarkar, Pritish Nandy, Prakash Raj, Aamir Khan showed their public support through twitter. [3]

Awards

  • Padmashree award by government of India in the year 1990
  • Indira Priyadarshini Vrikshamitra award, by government of India on November 19, 1986 from the hands of Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi.
  • Krishi Bhushana award by Maharashtra government in 1989.
  • Felicitation by Ahmednagar Municipal Corporation 15 January 1987
  • Felicitation by Pune Municipal Corporation.
  • On April 15, 2008, Kisan Baburao Hazare received the World Bank's 2008 Jit Gill Memorial Award for Outstanding Public Service: "Hazare created a thriving model village in Ralegan Siddhi, in the impoverished Ahmednagar region of Maharashtra state, and championed the right to information and the fight against corruption."[4]

Jan Lokpal Bill

The Jan Lokpal Bill (Citizen's ombudsman Bill) is a draft anti-corruption bill that would pave the way for a Jan Lokpal, an independent body like the Election Commission, which would have the power to prosecute politicians and bureaucrats without government permission.[1]
The bill has been drafted by Shanti Bhushan, former IPS Kiran Bedi, Justice N. Santosh Hegde, renowned advocate Prashant Bhushan, former chief election commissioner J. M. Lyngdoh in consultation with the leaders of the India Against Corruption movement and the civil society. The bill proposes institution of the office of Lokpal (Ombudsman) at center and Lok Ayukta at state level. Jan Lokpal Bill is designed to create an effective anti-corruption and grievance redressal systems at centre and to assure that effective deterrent is created against corruption and to provide effective protection to whistleblowers.[2][3]
The Lokpal Bill drafted by the government is pending to be passed in the Rajya Sabha since 42 years.[4] The first Lokpal Bill was passed in the 4th Lok Sabha in 1969 but could not get through in Rajya Sabha, subsequently, Lokpal bills were introduced in 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005 and in 2008, yet they were never passed and its pending. [5]

Background

The current lack of laws to curb corruption have made the need for Jan Lokpal Bill.

The Lokpal

The Jan Lokpal Bill proposes the Lokpal to be instituted as a ten member body along with its officers and the employees. The bill provides for appointment of the Chairperson and members of the Lokpal within six months of enacting the bill. Predictable vacancies in Lokpal are to be filled in advance at least before three months of such vacancy. Unpredictable vacancies are to be filled within one month of such vacancy.

Appointment of the Chairperson and the Members of Lokpal

The draft bill provides that at least four members of the Lokpal must have legal background. In order to assure people of integrity are appointed as members of the Lokpal, the bill bars appointment of any person who has been charge-sheeted under Prevention of Corruption Act or under Indian Penal Code.

Selection Committee

The bill provides for the setting up a selection committee comprising of
  1. The Chairpersons of both Houses of Parliament
  2. Two senior most judges of Supreme Court
  3. Two senior most Chief Justices of High Courts.
  4. All Nobel Laureates of Indian Origin
  5. Chairperson of National Human Rights Commission
  6. Last two Magsaysay Award winners of Indian origin
  7. Comptroller and Auditor General of India
  8. Chief Election Commissioner
  9. Bharat Ratna Award winners
  10. After the first set of selection process, the outgoing members and Chairperson of Lokpal.
The senior most Justice of Supreme Court shall act as chairperson of the selection committee.

Selection Procedure

  • Recommendations shall be invited through open advertisements in prescribed format.
  • Each person recommending shall be expected to justify the selection of his candidate giving examples from the past achievements of the candidate.
  • The list of candidates along with their recommendations received in the format mentioned above shall be displayed on a website.
  • Each member of the selection committee, on the basis of the above material, shall recommend such number of names as there are vacancies.
  • A priority list shall be prepared with the candidate receiving recommendations from maximum number of members of selection committee at the top. The candidates recommended by same number of members shall be treated at par.
  • This priority list shall be displayed on the website.
  • Around three times the names as there are vacancies, shall be shortlisted from the top.
  • Public feedback shall be invited on the shortlisted names by putting these names on the website.
  • The selection committee may decide to use any means to collect more information about the background and past achievements of the shortlisted candidates.
  • Selection committee shall invite shortlisted candidates for discussions, video recordings of which shall be made public.
  • All the material obtained so far about the candidates shall be made available to each member of the selection committee in advance. The members shall make their own assessment of each candidate.
  • The selection committee shall meet and discuss the material so received about each candidate. The final selections for the Chairperson and members shall be made preferably through consensus. Provided that if three or more members, for reasons to be recorded in writing, object to the selection of any member, he shall not be selected.
  • All meetings of selection committee shall be video recorded and shall be made public
The Prime Minister shall recommend the names finalized by the selection committee to the President immediately, who shall order such appointments within a month of receipt of the same.

Powers and Functions of Lokpal

The bill proposes Lokpal to receive complains under Prevention of Corruption Act, complaints of misconduct, grievances and complaints from whistle-blowers. The Lokpal shall also provide protection to whistle blowers.

Timeline of events in support of the bill

December 2010 (2010-12)
The bill is drafted and sent to government.
March 13, 2011 (2011-03-13)
A group of Delhi residents dressed in white shirts and t-shirts took a four-hour drive around the city to drum up campaign against corruption and support the Jan Lokpal Bill.[6]
April 4, 2011 (2011-04-04)
Anna Hazare, the anti corruption activist leader announces fast unto death till Jan Lokpal Bill enacted[7]
April 5, 2011 (2011-04-05)
Around 6,000 Mumbai residents joined Anna Hazare for a one-day fast to support the demand for implementation of the Jan Lokpal Bill.[8]
April 12, 2011 (2011-04-12)
Hazare have announced to begin Jail Bharo Andolan on April 12, 2011 if Bill is not passed.

Prominent Non Political Supporters

Spiritual
Activist
Players
  • Kapil Dev - former Indian cricketer and captain
Actors

Political support

The protests are non political in nature. The political parties are being discouraged to take advantage of the issue.[9]
The response of prominent political parties and leaders is:
  • Bhartya Janta Party have extended support to the bill.[10] The principal opposition demanded that the Centre convene an all-party meeting to discuss the ‘Jan Lokpal Bill’ issue. [11]
  • Uma Bharti and Chautala tried to visit the Jantar Manter.

Public support

Anna Hazare states that they have received six crore (60 million) SMSes in its support. [12] He is further supported by a large no of Internet activists, similar to Egypt [13]

Government response

The government have stated that it has not received the proposed bill copy and it doesn't seem in a hurry to acknowledge the issue. After the ‘fast unto death’ was announced by Anna Hazare, he was invited for talks by the PM, but the response was bad as the PM said the government has no time for corruption till May 13. [14] To dissuade the veteran Gandhian Anna Hazare from going on an indefinite fast, the Prime Minister's Office have directed the ministries of personnel and law to examine how the views of civil society activists can be included in the lokpal bill.[15]
The National advisory Council is against the government on the Lokpal bill. The NAC today rejected the present Lokpal bill draft that was given.[16]

Status of bill

The government is again thinking of introducing a Lokpal Bill in parliament this year, and the National Advisory Council (NAC) chaired by Sonia Gandhi is considering it. But as it stands today, the bill is riddled with loopholes, defeating its very purpose.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Sourav Ganguly : The warrior prince


http://100legends.blogspot.com/ i am legend




Sourav Chandidas Ganguly (Bengali: সৌরভ গাঙ্গুলী) ( pronunciation (help·info)) (born 8 July 1972) is a former Indian cricketer, and captain of the Indian national team. Born into an affluent family, Ganguly was introduced into the world of cricket by his elder brother Snehasish. He is regarded as India's most successful Captain in modern times[2]. He started his career by playing in state and school teams. Currently, he is the 5th highest run scorer in ODIs and was the 5th person in history to cross the 10,000 run landmark and only the 2nd Indian to cross that landmark .

After a series of plays in different Indian domestic tournaments such as the Ranji and Duleep trophies, Ganguly got his big-break while playing for India on their tour of England. He scored 131 runs and cemented his place in the Indian team. Ganguly's place in the team was assured after successful performances in series against Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Australia, winning the Man of the Match awards. In the 1999 Cricket World Cup, he was involved in a partnership of 318 runs with Rahul Dravid, which remains the highest overall partnership score in the World Cup tournament history.

Due to the match-fixing scandals in 2000 by other players of the team, and for his poor health, Indian captain Sachin Tendulkar resigned his position, and Ganguly was made the captain of the Indian cricket team. He soon received media criticism after an unsuccessful stint for county side Durham and for taking off his shirt in the final of the 2002 Natwest Trophy. He led India into the 2003 World Cup final, where they were defeated by Australia. Due to a decrease in individual performance, he was dropped from the team in the following year. Ganguly was awarded the Padma Shri in 2004, one of India's highest awards. He returned to the National team in 2006, and had successful batting displays. Around this time, he became involved in a dispute with Indian team coach Greg Chappell over several misunderstandings. Ganguly was again dropped from the team, however he was selected to play in the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

Ganguly joined the Kolkata Knight Riders team as captain for the Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket tournament in 2008. The same year, after a home Test series against Australia, he announced his retirement from cricket. After his retirement, Ganguly continued to play for the Bengal team and was appointed the chairman of the Cricket Association of Bengal's Cricket Development Committee. The left-handed Ganguly was a prolific One Day International (ODI) batsman, with over 11,000 ODI runs to his credit. He is India's one of the most successful Test Captain to date, winning 21 out of 49 test matches. An aggressive Captain, Ganguly is credited with having nurtured the careers of many young players who played under him.



Biography
1972–89: Early life and introduction to cricket

Sourav Ganguly was born on 8 July 1972 in Calcutta, and is the youngest son of Chandidas and Nirupa Ganguly.[4][5] Chandidas ran a flourishing print business and was one of the richest men in the city.[6] Ganguly had a luxurious childhood and was nicknamed the 'Maharaja', meaning the 'Great King'. Since the favourite sport for the people of Calcutta was the game of football, Ganguly was initially attracted to the game. However, academics came in-between his love for sports and Nirupa was not very supportive of Ganguly taking up cricket or any other sport as a career.[7][8] By then, his elder brother Snehasish was already an established cricketer for the Bengal cricket team. He supported Ganguly's dream to be a cricketer and asked their father to get Ganguly enrolled in a cricket coaching camp during his summer holidays. Ganguly was studying in tenth grade at that time.[9]

Despite being right-handed, Ganguly learnt to bat left-handed so he could use his brother's sporting equipment.[7] After he showed some promise as a batsman, he was enrolled in a cricket academy. An indoor multi-gym and concrete wicket was built at their home, so he and Snehasish could practice the game. They used to watch a number of old cricket match videos, especially the games played by David Gower, whom Ganguly admired.[6] After he scored a century against the Orissa Under–15 side, he was made captain of St Xavier's School's cricket team, where several of his teammates complained against what they perceived to be his arrogance.[7][10] While touring with a junior team, Ganguly refused his turn as the twelfth man, as he reportedly felt that the duties involved, which included organising equipment and drinks for the players, and delivering messages, were beneath his social status.[11] Ganguly purportedly refused to do such tasks as he considered it beneath his social status to assist his teammates in such a way.[12] However, his playmanship gave him a chance to make his first-class cricket debut for Bengal in 1989, the same year that his brother was dropped from the team.[7][13]
1990–96: Career beginning and debut success



The Lord's Pavillion

Following a prolific Ranji season in 1990–91,[14] Ganguly scored three runs in his One Day International (ODI) debut for India against the West Indies in 1992.[4][15] He was dropped immediately since he was perceived to be "arrogant" and his attitude towards the game was openly questioned. It was rumored that Ganguly refused to carry drinks for his teammates, commenting that it was not his job to do so, later denied by him. Consequently, he was removed from the team.[7][12] He toiled away in domestic cricket, scoring heavily in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 Ranji seasons.[16][17] Following an innings of 171 in the 1995–96 Duleep Trophy, he was recalled to the National team for a tour of England in 1996, in the middle of intense media scrutiny.[18] He played in a single ODI,[19] but was omitted from the team for the first Test. However, after teammate Navjot Singh Sidhu left the touring, citing ill-treatment by then captain Mohammad Azharuddin,[20][21] Ganguly made his Test debut against England in the Second Test of a three-match series at Lord's Cricket Ground alongside Rahul Dravid.[22] England had won the First Test of the three-match series; however, Ganguly scored a century, becoming only the third cricketer to achieve such a feat on debut at Lord's, after Harry Graham and John Hampshire. Andrew Strauss and Matt Prior have since accomplished this feat, but Ganguly's 131 still remains the highest by any batsman on his debut at the ground.[21] India was not required to bat in the second innings due to the match ending in a draw.[23] In the next Test match at Trent Bridge he made 136, thus becoming only the third batsman to make a century in each of his first two innings (after Lawrence Rowe and Alvin Kallicharran). He shared a 255 run stand with Sachin Tendulkar, which became at that time the highest partnership for India against any country for any wicket outside India. The Test again ended in a draw, handing England a 1–0 series victory; Ganguly scored 48 in the second innings.[24][25]
1997–99: Marriage, Opening in ODIs and World Cup '99



Ganguly in Sri Lanka in 2008.

Weeks after his successful tour of England, Ganguly eloped with childhood sweetheart Dona Roy. The bride and groom's family were sworn enemies at that point and this news caused an uproar between them. However, both families reconciled and a formal wedding was held in February 1997.[7][26] Same year, Ganguly scored his maiden ODI century by hitting 113, opposed to Sri Lanka's team total of 238. Later that year, he won four consecutive man of the match awards, in the Sahara Cup with Pakistan; the second of these was won after he took five wickets for 16 runs off 10 overs, his best bowling in an ODI. After a barren run in Test cricket his form returned at the end of the year with three centuries in four Tests all against Sri Lanka two of these involved stands with Sachin Tendulkar of over 250.[4]

During the final of the Independence Cup at Dhaka in January 1998, India successfully chased down 315 off 48 overs, and Ganguly won the Man of the Match award.[27] In March 1998 he was part of the Indian team that defeated Australia; in Kolkata, he took three wickets having opened the bowling with his medium pace.[28]

Ganguly was part of the Indian team that competed in the 1999 Cricket World Cup in England. During the match against Sri Lanka at Taunton, India chose to bat. After Sadagoppan Ramesh was bowled, Ganguly scored 183 from 158 balls, and hit 17 fours and seven sixes. It became the second highest score in World Cup history and the highest by an Indian in the tournament. His partnership of 318 with Rahul Dravid is the highest overall score in a World Cup and is the second highest in all ODI cricket.[29][30] In 1999–00, India lost Test series to both Australia and South Africa that involved a combined total of five Tests.[31][32] Ganguly struggled scoring 224 runs at 22.40; however his ODI form was impressive, with five centuries over the season taking him to the top of the PwC One Day Ratings for batsmen.[33] Around the same time, allegations came that Ganguly was romantically involved with South Indian actress Nagma, something he denied.[34]
2000–05: Ascension to captaincy and accolades



The shirt that Ganguly took off at the finals of the Natwest Trophy, on display at a store in London.

In 2000, after the match fixing scandal by some of the players of the team,[35] Ganguly was named the Captain of the Indian cricket team. The decision was spurred due to Tendulkar stepping down from the position for his health, and Ganguly being the vice-captain at that time.[7] He began well as a captain, leading India to a series win over South Africa in the five-match one day series and led the Indian team to the finals of the 2000 ICC KnockOut Trophy.[7] He scored two centuries, including one in the final; however, New Zealand still won by four wickets.[36] The same year, Ganguly tried his hand at County cricket career in England but was not a successful.[37] In "The Wisden Cricketer", reviewers Steve Pittard and John Stern called him as "The imperious Indian—dubbed 'Lord Snooty'". They commented:


"At the crease it was sometimes uncertain whether his partner was a batsman or a batman being dispatched to take his discarded sweater to the pavilion or carry his kit bag. But mutiny was afoot among the lower orders. In one match Ganguly, after reaching his fifty, raised his bat to the home balcony, only to find it deserted. He did not inspire at Glamorgan or Northamptonshire either. At the latter in 2006 he averaged 4.80 from his four first-class appearances."[38]

His Lancashire teammate Andrew Flintoff thought him to be aloof and compared his attitude to that of Prince Charles.[10] In Australia's three Test and five match ODI tour of India in early 2001, Ganguly caused controversy by arriving late for the toss on four occasions, something that agitated opposing captain Steve Waugh.[39] In the Fourth ODI, he caused further controversy by failing to wear his playing attire to the toss, something considered unusual in cricket circles.[40] However, India won the Test series 2–1, ending Australia's run of 16 consecutive Test match victories in the Second Test.[41] The match saw India looking set for defeat after conceding a first innings lead of 274. Waugh chose to enforce the follow-on and V. V. S. Laxman (281) and Rahul Dravid (180) batted for the entire fourth day's play to set Australia a target of 384 on a dusty, spinning wicket. The Australians were unable to survive and became only the third team to lose a Test after enforcing the follow-on.[42][43][44] In November 2001, Ganguly's wife Dona gave birth to their daughter Sana Ganguly.[7] At the Border-Gavaskar Trophy of 2001, During the final match of the 2002 Natwest Trophy held in Lords after a stunning performance by team mates Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif, Ganguly took off his shirt in public and brandished it in the air to celebrate India's winning of the match.[45] He was later strongly condemned for tarnishing the "gentleman's game" image of cricket and disrespecting Lords protocol. Ganguly said that he was only mimicking an act performed by the British all-rounder Andrew Flintoff during a tour of India.[46] In 2003, India reached the World Cup Final for the first time since 1983, where they lost to the Australians.[47] Ganguly had a successful tournament personally, scoring 465 runs at an average of 58.12, including three centuries.[48]

By 2004, he had achieved significant success as captain and was deemed as India's most successful cricket captain by sections of the media. However, his individual performance deteriorated during his captaincy reign, especially after the World Cup, the tour of Australia in 2003 and the Pakistan series in 2004.[49][50] In 2004, Australia won a Test series in India for the first time since 1969. It was speculated that Ganguly was in disagreement with the head of cricket in Nagpur over the type of pitch to be used for the Third Test. The groundsmen went against Ganguly, leaving a large amount of grass on the pitch. Some experts indicated that the reason for this was for "spite or revenge" against the Indian captain. When Australia's stand-in-captain, Adam Gilchrist, went to the toss, he noticed Rahul Dravid was waiting instead of Ganguly, leaving him to ask Dravid where Ganguly was. Dravid could not give a definitive answer, saying: "Oh, who knows?"[39][51]

Following indifferent form in 2004 and poor form in 2005, he was dropped from the team in October 2005.[52] Having been nominated and rejected in 2000, when the game suffered a tarnished reputation due to match fixing scadals,[35] the captaincy was passed to Dravid, his former deputy. Ganguly decided against retiring and attempted to make a comeback to the team.[12] Ganguly was awarded the Padma Shri in 2004, one of India's highest awards. He was presented with the award on June 30, 2004, by then President of India, Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.[53][54]
2006–07: Comeback and rift with Greg Chappell
Main article: Chappell Ganguly controversy



Ganguly signing autographs outside his residence.

In September 2005, Greg Chappell became the coach for the India tour of Zimbabwe. Ganguly's dispute with him resulted in many headlines. Chappell had emailed the Board of Control for Cricket in India, stating that Ganguly was "physically and mentally" unfit to lead India and that his "divide and rule" behaviour was damaging the team.[12] This email was leaked to the media and resulted in huge backlash from Ganguly's fans. Ganguly had enlisted the support from the Indian media and eventually the board had to intervene and order a truce between the pair.[12] BCCI president Ranbir Singh Mahendra issued a statement that,


"In view of the decision that cricket is to go forward, both the coach and the captain have been asked to work out a mutual and professional working relationship. For this, performance will be the criteria, applicable to captain, coach and players. [...] Of course the captain controls the game, the coach does his own job. Mutual trust is important. Henceforth no player/captain/coach will write or have any interaction with the media. Going to the media will lead to disciplinary action."[55]

Ganguly, Chappell and the Indian team manager for the Zimbabwe tour, Amitabh Choudhary, were asked to appear before the BCCI committee, where it was reported that assurance of working together was given by them.[55] Consequently, due to his poor form and differences with the coach, Ganguly was dropped as the captain of the team, with Dravid taking his place.[56] Chandresh Narayan, chief correspondent for The Times of India, commented that "The row with Greg Chappell just added to the mystery, but he was going through a really bad patch then, his only score [of note] was a hundred against Zimbabwe and that didn't count for much."[12] Ten months later, during India's tour to South Africa, Ganguly was recalled after his middle order replacements Suresh Raina and Mohammad Kaif suffered poor form.[57]

Following India's poor batting display in the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy[58] and the ODI series in South Africa, in which they were whitewashed 4-0,[59] Ganguly made his comeback to the Test team.[60] Wasim Jaffer, Zaheer Khan and Anil Kumble had earlier been selected for the one-day squad, despite their recent poor performances.[61] Many saw this as an indictment of coach Greg Chappell's youth-first policy.[62] Coming in at 37/4, Ganguly scored 83 in a tour match against the rest of South Africa, modifying his original batting style and taking a middle-stump guard,[63] resulting in India winning the match.[64] During his first Test innings since his comeback, against South Africa in Johannesburg his score of 51 helped India to victory, marking the first Test match win for the team in South Africa.[65][66] Though India lost the series, Ganguly accumulated the most runs on the scoring chart.[67] After his successful Test comeback he was recalled for the ODI team, as India played host to West Indies[68] and Sri Lanka[69] in back to back ODI tournaments. In his first ODI innings in almost two years,[70] he scored a matchwinning 98.[71] He performed well in both series, averaging almost 70[70] and won the Man of the Series Award against Sri Lanka.[72]

Ganguly was alloted a place in the official team for the 2007 Cricket World Cup.[73] He was the leading scorer for India in their first round defeat against Bangladesh.[74] After India were knocked out of the tournament in the group stage, there were reports of a rift between certain members of the Indian team and Chappell. Ganguly was alleged to have ignored instructions from the team management to score quickly.[75] After Tendulkar issued a statement saying that what hurt the team most was that "the coach has questioned our attitude", Chappell decided not to renew his contract with the Indian team and left his post as coach, citing "family and personal reasons".[76] On 12 December 2007, Ganguly scored his maiden double century of his career while playing against Pakistan. He scored 239 runs in the first innings of the third and final Test match of the series. He was involved in a 300 run partnership for the fifth wicket with Yuvraj Singh.[77] Ganguly remained prolific in both Test and ODI cricket in the year 2007. He scored 1106 Test runs at an average of 61.44 (with three centuries and four fifties) in 2007 to become the second highest run-scorer in Test matches of that year after Jacques Kallis.[78] He was also the fifth highest run-scorer in 2007 in ODIs, where he scored 1240 runs at an average of 44.28.[79]
2008–present: Kolkata Knight Riders and retirement



Ganguly with the symbol of the Kolkata Knight Riders, flanked by Shahrukh Khan on the right and Gauri Khan on the left.

In February 2008, Ganguly joined as the captain of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) team, owned by Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan.[80] On 18 April 2008, Ganguly led the KKR, in the IPL Twenty20 cricket match. They had a 140 run victory over Bangalore Royal Challengers captained by Rahul Dravid and owned by Vijay Mallya. Ganguly opened the innings with Brendan McCullum and scored 10 runs while McCullum remained unbeaten, scoring 158 runs in 73 balls.[81] On 1 May, in a game between the Knight Riders and the Rajasthan Royals, Ganguly made his second T20 half century, scoring 51 runs off of 39 balls at a strike rate of 130.76. In his innings, Ganguly hit four 4s and two sixes, topping the scorers list for the Knight Riders.[82]

On 7 July 2008, media reported that Ganguly was being projected as a candidate for the post of President of the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) against his former mentor Jagmohan Dalmiya. Reports also suggested that he could run for the post of BCCI President in 2014 as East Zone's representative. Ganguly himself did not deny the reports and did not rule out any such move.[83][84] The same year in October, Ganguly announced that the Test series against Australia starting in October 2008 would be his last and stated "[t]o be honest, I didn't expect to be picked for this series. Before coming here, [at the conference] I spoke to my team-mates and hopefully I will go out with a winning knock."[85] Ganguly played in every game of the four-Test series and amassed 324 runs at an average of 54.00.[86][87] While playing the second Test match of the series in Mohali, Ganguly scored his final test century. In the Fourth and final Test, with India needing one wicket to secure a victory, the Indian captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, invited Ganguly to lead the side in the field for the final time. India regained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, winning the series 2–0.[88][89]

In May 2009, Ganguly was removed from the captaincy of the KKR for IPL 2009, and was replaced by McCullum. The decision was questioned by media and other players of the team, when KKR finished at the bottom of the ranking table with three wins and ten losses.[90] After that, television channel Zee Bangla appointed him as the host of the reality quiz show titled Dadagiri. It presented participants from the 19 districts of West Bengal, who had to answer questions posed by Ganguly.[91] By August, he was appointed the chairman of CAB's Cricket Development Committee. The job of the committee is to receive a report from the selectors at the end of every cricket season, assess the accountability of the selectors and make necessary recommendations.[92] He played for the Ranji cup in the Bengal team in October 2009.[93] Ganguly scored 110 in the match against Delhi team, and was involved in a partnership of 222 runs with Wriddhiman Saha.[94]

In the third season of Indian Premier League, Ganguly was once again given the captaincy of Kolkata Knight Riders, after the team ended at the bottom in season 2. The coach John Buchanan was also replaced by new coach Dav Whatmore. [95]
Playing style and influences



Ganguly in action on the field.

Ganguly commented that David Gower was the first cricketer to attract him to the game. He loved Gower's style and used to watch old videos of him playing.[96] Other cricketers who had an influence on him are: David Boon, Mohinder Amarnath, Kapil Dev and Allan Border.[97] Ganguly is a left-handed batsman whose runs came primarily from the off-side. Debashish Dutta, author of Sourav Ganguly, the maharaja of cricket, commented that throughout his career, "Ganguly played off-side shots such as the square cut, square drive and cover drive with complete command."[98] Rahul Dravid has called Ganguly "...next to God on the off-side." He used to hit powerful shots to the off-side on front and back foot with equal ease. However, early in his career he was not comfortable with the hook and pull, often giving his wicket away with mistiming such shots. He was also criticized for having difficulty in handling short bouncers, notoriously exploited by the Australians and South Africans.[99] However, after his comeback in 2007, he worked upon these weaknesses to a large extent.[100]

Amrita Daityari, author of Sourav Ganguly: the fire within, noted that in ODIs, where Ganguly usually opened the innings, he used to try to take the advantage of fielding restrictions by advancing down the pitch and hitting pace bowlers over extra cover and mid-off. She commented: "Ganguly was notorious for attacking left-arm spin bowlers. Due to excellent eye–hand coordination, he was noted for picking the length of the ball early, coming down the pitch and hitting the ball aerially over mid-on or midwicket, often for a six. However, he did have a weakness in running between the wickets and judging quick singles."[101] There were many instances where Ganguly's batting partner was run out due to Ganguly's calling for a run, and then sending him back while halfway down the pitch. A situation like this happened in an ODI against Australia where he took a single when on 99, but he coasted and did not ground his bat. Although the bat was past the crease, it was in the air and he was consequently run out. Ganguly said, "I love to watch myself hit a cover drive, to watch myself hit a hundred."[102] Ganguly's relationship with former Indian coach John Wright has been well documented in contemporary media, with them denoting the relationship as a "symbiotic process". They credited Wright and Ganguly with bringing out international class performers, through academic, coaching and scientific fitness regimens.[103] According to Dubey, Ganguly and Wright, along with other members of the team like Tendulkar and Dravid, were the first to understand the importance of a foreign coach for the Indian cricket team and was convinced that the domestic coach has outlived its utility. Ganguly's aggressive style and Wright's importance on fitness ushered in the development of a better cricket team for India.[103]

Ganguly is a right-arm medium pace bowler. He can swing and seam the ball both ways and often chips in with useful wickets to break partnerships.[4] Vinod Tiwari, author of the biography Sourav Ganguly praised him saying "[d]espite not being very athletic as a fielder, Ganguly has taken 100 catches in one-day Internationals. That's something to be proud of!" However he criticized Ganguly's ground fielding, especially his slowness in intercepting the ball to prevent runs and his tendency to get injured during catching the ball.[104]
Legacy



An innings-by-innings breakdown of Ganguly's Test match batting career, showing runs scored (red bars) and the average of the last ten innings (blue line).

Author Pradeep Mandhani commented that in his tenure between 2000 and 2005, Ganguly became India's most successful Test captain. He led his team to victory on 21 occasions — seven times more than Mohammad Azharuddin with the second most wins—and led them for a record 49 matches—twice more than both Azharuddin and Sunil Gavaskar.[105][106] Compared to his batting average of 45.47 when not captain,[107] Ganguly's Test batting average as captain was a lower 37.66.[108]

Statistics about Ganguly show that he was the seventh Indian cricketer to have played 100 Test matches,[109] the 4th highest overall run scorer for India in Tests,[110] and the fourth Indian to have played in more than 300 ODIs.[111] In terms of overall runs scored in ODIs, Ganguly is the second among Indians after Sachin Tendulkar (who has the most ODI runs) and the fifth overall.[112] He has scored 16 centuries in Test matches and 22 in ODIs. He is also one of only eight batsmen to score more than 10,000 runs in ODIs.[113] Along with Tendulkar, Ganguly has formed the most successful opening pair in One Day Cricket, having amassed the highest number of century partnerships (26) for the first wicket. Together, they have scored more than 7000 runs at an average of 48.98, and hold the world record for creating most number of 50-run partnership in the first wicket (44 fifties).[114] Ganguly became the fourth player to cross 11,000 ODI runs, and was the fastest player to do so in ODI cricket, after Tendulkar.[115] As of 2006, he is the only Indian captain to win a Test series in Pakistan (although two of the three Tests of that series was led by Rahul Dravid). He is also one of the three players in the world to achieve amazing treble of 10,000 runs, 100 wickets and 100 catches in ODI cricket history, the others being Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya.[116]



Ganguly with the young cricketers of the Kolkata Knight Riders team during IPL 2009.

Author Mihir Bose, in his book, The magic of Indian cricket: cricket and society in India. commented that "The cricket world had gotten too used to the stereotype of the meek Indian cricketer. All that has changed under Ganguly, perhaps for the better."[117] He credits Ganguly for not being shy of taking on responsibility. "He showed that he can be a leader of a team, which has greats like Sachin and Dravid in the side, without any problems. Under Ganguly's leadership, India started winning matches and tournaments, previously lacking from the team considerably."[117] Within a few years of his captaincy, Ganguly rewrote the rules of being a captain of a cricket team. Unlike some of his predecessors, Ganguly was considered impartial, non-parochial, and forever pushed his players to perform better. Off the field, his interactions with the media, his fans, and detractors were uncompromisingly honest and earned him the respect of cricket followers everywhere. However, along with this respect came the criticisms. Ganguly was condemned as a hot-tempered man who refused to listen to other's opinions and abided by his own rules and regulations.[117] Matthew Engel, ICC sport critic, noted that this "turning deaf" to other's opinions would one day harm Ganguly and that it was sheer luck that he existed on the sporting world.[118]

Ganguly believed that his legacy as a captain was that he was able to build a proper Indian team. He added,


"[We] were able to change the face of Indian cricket. That's what I'm proud of, because I think we made a huge difference. People used to think that we would simply roll over when playing out of India, but we changed the image. [...] [The team wouldn't take any crap from any opposition] Absolutely, and that came from self-belief that, that we had the ability to do well outside India."[119]

Bose commented that Ganguly's greatest legacy lay in his influence on the younger and budding generation of cricketers. Ganguly felt that every young player should play two years of domestic cricket before being selected for international assignments. He also said that every newcomer should be given at least five games to prove himself.[120][121] Later he explained that being at the receiving end of an unfair decision against him, that threatened to ruin his international cricket career, it enabled him to understand the insecurities of other newcomers in the team better than his predecessors. Ganguly had always backed the influence and contribution of younger players of the team.[122] Despite his contributions, his captaincy and coaching methods came under immense scrutiny from the press as well as other scholars. Engel commented that "He seems like aloof to the problems that his mal-decisions are creating. I don't particularly believe that Ganguly has an 'effing knowledge how to lead his team and tries to counter-pose it with instigating limiteless, confrontational behavious within the younger members of it. [One day] the time will come when such shock tactics will cease to work."[123] An article on Cricinfo Magazine pointed out his reckless behaviour. The reporter Rahul Bhattacharya said, "Generally Ganguly fostered angry or reckless young men. To him 'good behaviour', a broad term espoused by the present team management, belonged in school and probably not even there. He himself had been summoned to the match referee no less than 12 times in the last decade. His approach was bound to precipitate what could possibly be termed a cultural conflict in the world of modern sport. For Ganguly, like for Arjuna Ranatunga, competitiveness involved brinksmanship rather than training. As far as they were concerned Australia were not to be aspired to. They were simply to be toppled. England were not to be appeased. Victory lay precisely in their disapproval. In other words, Ganguly and Ranatunga wanted to do things their way."



List of international cricket centuries by Sourav Ganguly

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
A man in the Indian test cricket uniform standing near the boundary line
Sourav Ganguly scored 16 centuries in Test matches and 22 in ODIs.
Sourav Ganguly is a former Indian cricketer and captain of the Indian national team. He scored centuries (100 or more runs) on 16 occasions in Test cricket and in 22 One Day International (ODI) matches.[1] He never played a Twenty20 international.[2]
In Tests, Ganguly scored centuries against all the Test-cricket playing nations except the West Indies and South Africa. He is sixth on the list of leading Test century makers for India.[3] He made a century on Test debut, scoring 131 against England in Lord's in 1996, the tenth Indian player to score a century on Test debut,[4] and is the third player – the first since John Hampshire in 1969 – to score a century on debut at Lord's.[5] In his next Test match at Trent Bridge, he made 136, becoming only the third batsman to make a century in each of his first two innings.[6] His highest score is 239, against Pakistan in 2007 at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore. This was his only double century (200 or more runs). His centuries have been scored in fourteen cricket grounds, of which eight were outside India. He ended up in the nineties on four occasions, including twice on 99.[7]
In ODIs, Ganguly scored centuries against ten opponents, including all the cricketing nations that have permanent One Day International status except the West Indies. His first ODI century was against Sri Lanka at the R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo in 1997. His highest ODI score is 183, which was also scored against Sri Lanka at the County Ground, Taunton in 1999. He is fourth in the list of leading century makers in ODIs, behind Sachin Tendulkar, who has 47, Sanath Jayasuriya with 28 and Ricky Ponting with 26.[8] Out of these centuries, four were scored at home grounds and eighteen were at away (opposition's home) or neutral venues. He was dismissed six times between 90 and 100.[9]

 Test centuries

A graph of a cricketer's performance in red and blue colours
An innings-by-innings breakdown of Ganguly's Test match batting career, showing runs scored (red bars) and the average of the last ten innings (blue line)
A large building with several balconies in which spectators are seated
The pavilion at Lord's Cricket Ground, where Ganguly scored a century on debut
A grassy ground, surrounded by empty stands. Two floodlights in the background
Eden Gardens, Ganguly's home ground where he did not make a century until late in his career
Key:
Symbol Meaning
* He remained not out.
He was the captain of the Indian team in that match.
Test The number of the Test matches played in that series.
Pos. His position in the batting order
Inn. The innings in the Test match.
H/A Whether the venue was at home (India) or away.
Lost The match was lost by India.
Won The match was won by India.
Draw The match was drawn.

No.↓ Score↓ Against↓ Pos.↓ Inn.↓ Test↓ Venue↓ H/A↓ Date↓ Result↓
1 131  England 3 2 2/3 Lord's Cricket Ground, London Away 01996-06-22 22 June 1996 Draw[4]
2 136  England 3 1 3/3 Trent Bridge, Nottingham Away 01996-07-04 4 July 1996 Draw[6]
3 147  Sri Lanka 6 2 2/2 Sinhalese Sports Club, Colombo Away 01997-08-11 11 August 1997 Draw[10]
4 109  Sri Lanka 6 2 1/3 Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali Home 01997-11-22 22 November 1997 Draw[11]
5 173  Sri Lanka 4 1 3/3 Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai Home 01997-12-04 4 December 1997 Draw[12]
6 101*  New Zealand 4 4 3/3 WestpacTrust Park (now Seddon Park), Hamilton Away 01999-01-06 6 January 1999 Draw[13]
7 125  New Zealand 5 1 3/3 Sardar Patel Stadium, Motera Home 01999-10-30 30 October 1999 Draw[14]
8 136♠  Zimbabwe 3 2 2/2 Feroz Shah Kotla, New Delhi Home 02002-03-02 2 March 2002 Won[15]
9 128♠  England 5 1 3/4 Headingley, Leeds Away 02002-08-23 23 August 2002 Won[16]
10 100*♠  New Zealand 6 1 1/2 Sardar Patel Stadium, Motera Home 02003-10-09 9 October 2003 Draw[17]
11 144♠  Australia 5 2 1/4 Brisbane Cricket Ground, Woolloongabba, Brisbane Away 02003-12-07 7 December 2003 Draw[18]
12 101♠  Zimbabwe 5 2 1/2 Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo Away 02005-09-15 15 September 2005 Won[19]
13 100  Bangladesh 5 1 1/2 Bir Shrestha Shahid Ruhul Amin Stadium, Chittagong Away 02007-05-19 19 May 2007 Draw[20]
14 102  Pakistan 5 1 2/3 Eden Gardens, Kolkata Home 02007-12-01 1 December 2007 Draw[21]
15 239  Pakistan 4 1 3/3 M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore Home 02007-12-08 8 December 2007 Draw[22]
16 102  Australia 6 1 2/4 Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali Home 02008-10-18 18 October 2008 Won[23]

 ODI centuries

 A ground with sportsman playing cricket, with stands in the background
The County Ground in Taunton, where Ganguly made his highest One Day International score
 A ground with a bowler running in to bowl, with stands and floodlights in the background
The Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town, the site of Ganguly's second last ODI century
Key:
Symbol Meaning
* He remained not out.
He was the captain of the Indian team in that match.
Pos. His position in the batting order
Inn. Innings in the match
H/A/N Whether the venue was at home (India), away (opposition's home) or neutral.
S/R His strike rate
Lost The match was lost by India.
Won The match was won by India.
No.↓ Score↓ Against↓ Pos.↓ Inn.↓ S/R↓ Venue↓ H/A/N↓ Date↓ Result↓
1 113  Sri Lanka 2 1 89.68 R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo Away 01997-08-20 20 August 1997 Lost[24]
2 124  Pakistan 1 2 89.85 Bangabandhu Stadium, Dhaka Neutral 01998-01-18 18 January 1998 Won[25]
3 105  New Zealand 2 1 75.00 Sharjah Cricket Association Stadium, Sharjah Neutral 01998-04-17 17 April 1998 Won[26]
4 109  Sri Lanka 1 1 80.14 R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo Away 01998-07-07 7 July 1998 Won[27]
5 107*  Zimbabwe 2 2 82.94 Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo Away 01998-09-27 27 September 1998 Won[28]
6 130*  Sri Lanka 1 1 81.25 Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground, Nagpur Home 01999-03-22 22 March 1999 Won[29]
7 183  Sri Lanka 2 1 115.82 County Ground, Taunton Neutral 01999-05-26 26 May 1999 Won[30]
8 139  Zimbabwe 2 1 94.55 Gymkhana Club Ground, Nairobi Neutral 01999-10-01 1 October 1999 Won[31]
9 153*  New Zealand 1 1 102.00 Captain Roop Singh Stadium, Gwalior Home 01999-11-11 11 November 1999 Won[32]
10 100  Australia 2 2 78.74 Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne Away 02000-01-12 12 January 2000 Lost[33]
11 141  Pakistan 2 1 97.91 Adelaide Oval, Adelaide Neutral 02000-01-25 25 January 2000 Won[34]
12 105*♠  South Africa 1 2 75.53 Keenan Stadium, Jamshedpur Home 02000-03-12 12 March 2000 Won[35]
13 135*♠  Bangladesh 1 2 108.87 Bangabandhu Stadium, Dhaka Away 02000-05-31 31 May 2000 Won[36]
14 141*♠  South Africa 1 1 99.29 Gymkhana Club Ground, Nairobi Neutral 02000-10-13 13 October 2000 Won[37]
15 117♠  New Zealand 1 1 90.00 Gymkhana Club Ground, Nairobi Neutral 02000-10-15 15 October 2000 Lost[38]
16 144♠  Zimbabwe 2 1 94.73 Sardar Patel Stadium, Motera Home 02000-12-05 5 December 2000 Won[39]
17 127♠  South Africa 1 1 100.79 New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg Away 02001-10-05 5 October 2001 Lost[40]
18 111♠  Kenya 1 1 89.51 Boland Park, Paarl Neutral 02001-10-24 24 October 2001 Won[41]
19 117*♠  England 2 2 107.33 R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo Neutral 02002-09-22 22 September 2002 Won[42]
20 112*♠  Namibia 3 1 94.11 City Oval, Pietermaritzburg Neutral 02003-02-23 23 February 2003 Won[43]
21 107*♠  Kenya 3 2 89.16 Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town Neutral 02003-03-07 7 March 2003 Won[44]
22 111*♠  Kenya 3 1 97.36 Kingsmead, Durban Neutral 02003-03-20 20 March 2003 Won[45]
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...