How Success Feels When it Comes Against All Odds!
Well I understand that success cannot be defined in absolute terms but they can definitely be graded. Success becomes more so sweet when it comes against all odds. It becomes more so satisfying when nobody even gives you a chance. And one person who can get in this character easily in recent times is no other than Saurav Ganguly. Yes, Indian Cricket team’s former captain and most successful captain. If we go through his career graph, we will notice that Saurav made a almost forgetable debut in Australia way back in 1991. After which he was droped - some say because of alleged attitude problem. But if it was not for his Never Say Die attitude the the name Saurav Ganguly would have never emerged in the cricketing arena. After his great comeback in 1996 during the tour of England he has performed consistently and even scored faster than Sachin Tendulkar. Since 1999 when we was crowned captain after the infamous match fixing saga, he not only upped the morale of the team but also gave a new dimension call Team India and the winning mantra.
Since 1999 he was almost the unquestioned king of the team till the beginning of 2005. He had a great run in the 2003 world cup leading India to the final. But in 2005 form started deserting him and so his luck. With Guru Greg as Coach I am not sure if it was a personality clash but I feel guru greg has gone too far in his endevour. He was stripped of cpataincy and dropped from the team. He may never be able to come to know what went behind the doors, those leaked emails, personal ambitions etc. But from succes point of view he has taken all this in his stride and went on to play domestic games. Now see what self belief and determination can do shown when made a stunning comeback again in 2007. This should be seen as a great example of persevearence and determination to show I am still in the game. In 2007 he is the second highest run getter in Tests. Also, in ODIs his avarage is above 50. He is a great inspiration to any body who is up against all odds that it can be done.
Now I think he is in the final leg of his career and given that he is a good strategist he might have planned his retirement too. So why humiliate a man who has done so much for Indian cricket when he is performing well. It becomes more disturbing when we hear news that the present ODI captain do not want him. If the present ODI captain is not able to handle seniors then I think his time as a captain of the ODI team may not have arrived. Teams need to be selected based on the player’s merits and not who likes or dislikes or cannot handle what. Is it so difficult to digest success of our peers in India? That we need to humiliate them. As a symbol of success, Saurav Ganguly deserves dignity. Let us not deny this to him - he has earned it.
I wanted to put into prespective what success feels when it comes against all odds. When the wind is blowing against you and everything looks pitted against you. Very few things can be sweeter than success achived this way.