Unanimous Verdict: Great Timing

8212; Krish Srikkanth, former Test captain and chairman of selectors

8220;Ganguly was an outstanding captain and a great player. I guess all great careers have to come to an end.8221;

8212; dilip vengsarkar, former Test captain

8220;I am surprised, but it8217;s a good decision. He has been under scrutiny for quite some time and people had started doubting his capabilities. A dignified exit was imperative.8221;

8212; javagal srinath, former India fast bowler

8220;I am really surprised to hear this. He was the top performer against Pakistan some time ago8230;I really feel he had a few years of cricket left in him.8221;

8212; Mohd azharuddin, former Test captain

India looked completely different under his captaincy.

8212; kapil dev, former Test captain

Sourav: The story so far

8226; JanuarY 1992: ODI debut against Australia, scores 3 and gets the axe

8226; June 1996: 131 against England at the Lord8217;s on his Test debut and follows it up with another century in the next Test at Trent Bridge

8226; August 1997: First of 21 ODI centuries, in Colombo against Sri Lanka

8226; September 1997: Leading scorer 222 and wicket-taker 15 in the Sahara Cup in Toronto, helping India thrash Pakistan 4-1. Named Man of the Series after winning four Man-of-the-Match awards in five matches

8226; November-December 1997: Man of the Series in the three-Test home series against Sri Lanka, scoring 392 runs at an average of 98

8226; May 1999: 183 in Taunton against Sri Lanka in 1999, then India8217;s highest ODI score and still an Indian World Cup record

8226; September 1999: Captains India for the first time in the Singapore Challenge one-day tournament against the West Indies

8226; February 2000: Named captain for the five-match one-day series against South Africa after Tendulkar steps down. India win 3-2

8226; March 2001: Leads India to historic 2-1 win against Australia at home. Scores only 106 runs in six innings but hailed for his leadership and gamesmanship, which includes making Steve Waugh wait for the toss

8226; November 2001: Warned along with five other Indians for excessive appealing during the Port Elizabeth Test by match-referee Mike Denness.

w July 2002: Scores 60 off 43 balls in the final and famously twirls his shirt at the Lord8217;s balcony after India win the NatWest Trophy

8226; December-JANUARY 2003-04: Scores 144 on a bouncy track in the rain-hit first Test in Brisbane to set the tone for India8217;s shock 1-1 draw in Australia after experts had predicted a 4-0 whitewash

8226; April 2004: First Indian captain to win a Test series in Pakistan, and with 15 Test wins, becomes India8217;s most successful captain in history

8226; October 2004: India lose home series against Australia for the first time in 35 years, Ganguly misses last two Tests due to injury amidst allegations that he skipper Nagpur match because of a green pitch

8226; March 2005: Scores 48 runs in five innings, one of his worst performances with the bat, as India draw home series against Pakistan

8226; September 2005: After scoring a laboured century in Bulawayo, reveals that coach Greg Chappell asked him to step down from captaincy, leading to a long fued with the India coach over the next year

8226; November 2005: End of five-year reign as Test captain as Rahul Dravid takes over the reins against Sri Lanka. Ganguly surprisingly dropped after the second Test in Delhi

8226; January 2006: Picked for the Test series in Pakistan but dropped despite a decent show in Karachi, overlooked for almost a year after that

8226; DECEMBER-JANUARY 2006-07: Recalled after his domestic struggles, emerges as India8217;s leading run-getter in the Test series in South Africa

8226; July-August 2007: Scores 249 at 49.80 in India8217;s series win in England

8226; November-December 2007: Top scorer 534 and Man of the Series in the three-Test series against Pakistan. Scores first Test 100 at his home ground at Eden Gardens. Slams his first double-century in Bangalore

8226; December 2007-January 2008: A mixed Test series in Australia 235 runs at 29.37, two half-centuries. Axed from the ODI squad

8226; SEPTMBER-OCTOBER 2008: Dropped from Rest of India team for Irani Cup. Picked for Australia Tests, announces he will retire after the series

Dramatic month, even by his standards

8226; September 8: The Dilip Vengsarkar-led selection committee leaves Sourav Ganguly out of the Rest of India squad for the Irani Cup against Ranji champions Delhi.

8226; September 16: The Bengal batsman decides to play in the JP Attray tournament in Chandigarh. Fails to make a big score.

8226; October 1: Named in the 15-man squad for the first two Tests against Australia. Rubbishes the talk of a 8216;deal8217; with BCCI for a graceful exit. Decides to play for India A in a four-day game against New Zealand A.

8226; October 4: Scores just 14 in the first innings before getting run out.

8226; October 6: Flops with the bat in the second innings as India A lose to New Zealand A.

8226; October 7: Announces he will retire after the Australia series.