Ganguly googly

Sitting out Thursday's India-Zimbabwe encounter at Rajkot as punishment for offensive behaviour on the field must have been galling for a ...

Sitting out Thursday8217;s India-Zimbabwe encounter at Rajkot as punishment for offensive behaviour on the field must have been galling for a spirited cricketer like Saurav Ganguly. Especially in a thrilling match that India won. But if he suffered from any remorse, he didn8217;t particularly care to demonstrate it, preferring instead to dismiss his behaviour, although 8220;unfortunate8221;, as 8220;part of the game8221;. Really? Since when did jumping up and down, uttering obscenities and stomping away in a great sulk, just because the umpire remained impervious to three lbw appeals, become a part of the game? Since when did a captain get the licence to intimidate the opposition and browbeat his way to victory? Certainly, match-referee Bary Jarman did not think so, otherwise he would not have been constrained to rap the India captain hard on the knuckles.

Some days ago, Saurav Ganguly was asked whether he was prepared to put all the recent odium that had visited Indian cricket behind him and concentrate on the game, and he replied that he had done just that 8212; six months ago. A very mature response that was, and one that indicated the wisdom and poise of a man worthy of leading a national cricket team. The unedifying spectacle that he made of himself at Kanpur was therefore all the more disappointing, given Ganguly8217;s indisputable qualities, both on the field and off it. This is not to deny the pressure of a game that is, despite all its many infirmities, still regarded as synonymous with national pride. The old adage that winning is not everything tends to get drowned in the ululations of thousands of flag-waving, chest-thumping spectators. Winning suddenly becomes the only thing. It is easy then to slip into the stance of the Victorious Gladiator, the Hero No 1, the Sheet Anchor of the Team, especially if you happen to be already wearing the tag 8220;Prince ofCalcutta8221;, after your name. Some would maintain that success followed this all-rounder far too quickly, thanks to a combination of great talent and fortuitous circumstances. While the benefits of this are obvious 8212; the immense cache of youthful exuberance for one 8212; it has its downside as well. Ganguly is called upon to play a role that his biological age ill prepares him for. And he has to do this at a time when Indian cricket is recovering from the deathly blow administered to it by other equally talented proponents of the game.

Ganguly should also learn from the fate of people like Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja. It was not just an obsession with Rolex watches and glamorous film stars that finished them as players of the game. It was an arrogance brought about by their own feelings of invincibility andexceptionalism, of being beyond the rules that apply for the rest of the world. So, Saurav, learn well from this temporary banishment from the cricket pitch of your dreams and get yourself together. Otherwise it may just be too late.