Grow up, big brother

Cricket in India is a revered sport and as a result, cricketers tend to get looked at differently to most other athletes in the country. At the start of this century, a select group of men came together to start a revolution.

Leading them in this mission was a 28-year-old named Sourav Ganguly, who was four years into his international career and a settled member of the side. For the next half-a-decade under his leadership, India flowered like they had not, for years. They competed everywhere around the world and won in places that many fans growing up in the 90s only dreamt they could.

Three years after giving up the captaincy, Ganguly had had enough of fearing the cull from the team and retired from all forms of international cricket.

Nearly 16 years after his international retirement, Ganguly has worn several hats, in no specific order. Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) President. Member of BCCI's working committee. Delhi Capitals director of cricket. BCCI President.

All of these accomplishments post-retirement has meant that a certain side to the 52-year-old former captain has gone a bit unnoticed and the latest instance of him showing that side should certainly raise eyebrows.

Kolkata has been in a state of mourning in the past week. India's Independence Day week coincided with a ghastly case of a 31-year-old doctor being sexually harassed and murdered at a city hospital, leaving many to question the lessons learnt from undisputedly the worst among these incidents that took place in the national capital, in December 2012.

Such situations call for a sense of rationality and even some might say, silence if perspective around it is forgotten. Ganguly, who has been seen as Bengal's pride for a large part of the 21st century, was asked his views about the harrowing incident in his hometown. His reply gave a sad and appalling reminder of what he had become.

"Very unfortunate. Strict action should be taken. This incident is terrible... Really really scary... Everything is possible everywhere. So security system, CCTV cameras should be prepared accordingly. This incident can happen anywhere. Strict action should be taken. Very hard work done."

"I don't think everything should be judged on an isolated incident. There is no room to think that everything or everyone is not safe for this Such accidents happen all over the world. So it is wrong to think that girls are not safe. Not only in West Bengal, but everywhere in India, women are safe. Where we live is the best place. One should not judge by one incident," he said.

Amidst the protests, many in Bengal were left disturbed by the thoughts of one of their beloved sons, who, it seemed, had not fully understood the magnitude of the incident. A clarification was issued later, but, unquestionably, the damage had already been done.

During his playing days, Ganguly was famously referred to as "dada" within the team, by the younger members. To some of his contemporaries, he was "dadi". Either way, the term in Bengali refers to a big brother.

Yet, the former southpaw's words and behavioral patterns, especially in the last five years, have made some question whether the big brother was actually the most grown-up among all of them.

When Ganguly took over as the BCCI top boss in October 2019 (in dramatic circumstances, I must add), there was a real sense of optimism among the die-hard supporters. No one, from among his peers, had reached such a height and with so much positivity in the air, it was a stint that did not look like it would undermine expectations, when it eventually concluded.

Yet, when it did end three years later, it was exactly that. Ganguly's tenure can best be described as average with a few glaring incidents and quotes reflecting an unseen, worrying side to his personality.

Take the case of the Women's IPL. Prior to the opening edition in 2023, India's best women cricketers assembled during the IPL Playoffs week, were split into teams of three and made to take part in a week-long affair that can at best be described a side dish in a buffet and at worst, an absolute sham.

Being the President at the time, Ganguly was questioned about the lack of effort being put in to come up with a better league, that would sincerely help grow the women's game in India. The response was not just lazy, but lacked foresight.

“Yes, of course, they will. The Women’s T20 Challenge will again be back this year in the month of May. Hopefully, in the future, we will be able to host a bigger women’s IPL once the number of women players [player pool] goes up. But this year, the Women’s T20 Challenge will happen during the IPL playoffs,” Ganguly told Sportstar in an interview.

Administrators in Indian cricket have historically been looked as men or women who are thirsty for power, without having the intellect to know what to do when they get that power. Ganguly entered the BCCI premises with more than a decade of playing experience and more than five years of working in various capacities at CAB and yet ended his term having not met the expectations that he began his stint with.

Among his peers, who began the Indian cricket revolution in 2000 after the match fixing scandal, Ganguly lived the most lavish of lives in Kolkata. Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar came from middle-class backgrounds and saw fame a bit later than Ganguly. As did the likes of Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath.

However, what did not come to light during his playing days has come to the fore more than once in the last few years, which is that money did not, unfortunately, bring the desired intellect in him. That what we saw during his time as India’s captain was merely an ability to make the right decisions on the cricket field, but did not portray the full picture of Ganguly the person.

Dravid and Ganguly made their Test debuts in the same match in June 1996. Close to 16 years after he the former called it quits, the latter not just praised him for a glittering career, but also said that his vice-captain for five years had the habit of saying the right thing, almost always.

It is sad that, in more recent times, Ganguly cannot say that about himself.