If someone justifies the word Dadagiri it’s none other than India’s own Dada, Sourav Ganguly. In common parlance, Dada is not someone who can be intimidated or even held back. The larger-than-life figure, who changed the face of Indian cricket has given us numerous moments to cherish forever. However, at the same time, he was involved in a lot of controversies during his heydays, on and off the field. Ganguly, as captain of the team, employed a no-nonsense approach on the field. In this special feature, we will celebrate such lion-hearted member of the Indian team. This article looks at the 5 moments when Sourav Ganguly got angry on the Cricket field.
5) Stuart Broad sent miles away
It was in 2007, during the sixth ODI of the seven-match ODI series between India and England. Batting first, England set India a target of 317. India was on course to comfortably achieve their target as openers Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar propelled India to a flying start. They both put up 55 runs in the first nine overs. That’s when things heated up a notch. Trying to hit Stuart Broad through the off-side on the last ball of the over, Dada found Owais Shah fielding at short cover. Broad and Ganguly were seen exchanging a few steamy words after the over. Much so that the on-field umpire Aleem Dar had to intervene between the two.
The next over saw Broad steaming into Ganguly for which the Indian captain had a befitting response. He let the bat do the talking, and sent Broad flying for a colossal six. That’s just Dada being the Dada.
Broad – 0, Dada – 1
4) Hurry up, Yousuf!
Slow over-rates are constant problems for any captain as they can be very severe on the captain. Sourav Ganguly was also banned for 6 matches due to a slow over-rate during the home ODI series against Pakistan in April 2005. His ban was extended for the first two matches of India in the Tri-series that followed. However, Ganguly became more conscious with time. So it was during one of the matches between India and Pakistan during 2005 that Ganguly got angry with Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf for holding up the game to get treatment. Ganguly also engaged in animated conversations with the umpire before reminding the batsman that he was wasting time.
Also Read: Comparison between Sourav Ganguly, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli as India’s Test Captain.
3) Verbal spat with Russel Arnold
No one can ever forget the aggressive one-on-one verbal battle that Sourav Ganguly had with Russel Arnold during the Champions Trophy final against Sri Lanka in 2002. The ‘Bengal Tiger’ had got into an on-field spat with Russel Arnold, who ran on the pitch to gain an unfair advantage for his spinners. Who were to come on to bowl in the next innings. Arnold cut the last ball of Kumble’s 40th over and ran for a quick single. While getting back to his crease, Rahul Dravid spotted him creating footmarks on the pitch and pointed it out to captain Ganguly. Captain Ganguly did not take any ease off the matter, and rightfully so. Ganguly, at that time, was fielding at the cover before he charged towards Arnold, getting himself involved in a heated chat. He was heard saying:
“I am just saying, keep away. Don’t f**k around.”
When Umpire Shepherd tried to intervene, Dada gave a mouthful to Shephard too.
2) Drinks can wait Pommie!
It was in 2002, during an ODI series vs Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe was inching close to a famous win in the first ODI. India needed to defend five runs from four balls. However, Zimbabwe had just one wicket in hand. It was then, when twelfth man Pommie Mbangwa ran onto the field, carrying drinks and perhaps a few words from the coaching staff. Staring at a shock defeat, an already infuriated Dada became more furious and ordered Mbangwa to leave the field until the Zimbabwean obliged. This was one of the 5 moments when Sourav Ganguly got brutally angry on the Cricket field.
Typical Dada-giri!
Also Read: Sourav Ganguly Birthday special [8th July] : Remembering Dada on his birthday
1) The iconic celebration of Lord’s
Dada-giri – this is what aptly defines this celebration. On the hallowed turf at Lord s, who would dare to celebrate by stripping off his shirt and wave that in the air? In 2002, Dada did exactly the same. He took his shirt off and swung it to glory from the Lord’s balcony. India defeated England in the NatWest Trophy final. It was one heck of a dramatic final that saw India chasing down 326 in a high-pressure final against the mighty English Team.
Dada’s celebration was a payback to Andrew Flintoff. Notably, Flintoff had hurt Indian sentiments and swung his shirt at Mumbai’s Wankhede thirteen months earlier, in the joy of having leveled the series with India. He further revealed that Flintoff’s antics were unacceptable and derogatory, and “if Lord’s is their (England) mecca, Wankhede is ours”. John Wright revealed in the Indian Summers that Harbhajan Singh had planned the same for the whole team but only to be stopped by Rahul Dravid.
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