On Sourav Ganguly's 45th Birthday, Wishes Pour In From Around The World
Former cricketers and fans took to Twitter to wish former India captain Sourav Ganguly on his 45th birthday.
- Santosh Rao
- Updated: July 08, 2017 04:48 PM IST
Highlights
- Sourav Ganguly turned 45 on Saturday
- Cricketers and fans took to Twitter to wish him
- Ganguly captained India in 49 Tests and 147 ODIs
Birthday wishes poured in from around the world as former India captain Sourav Ganguly turned 45 on Saturday. Known affectionately as 'Dada', Ganguly is credited with changing the face of Indian cricket. After making a sensational Test debut, where he scored a century, at the famed Lord's in 1996, the left-hander went on to captain Team India in 49 Tests and 147 ODIs. Former cricketers and fans took to Twitter to wish Ganguly on his birthday and acknowledge his immense contribution to Indian cricket.
Ganguly is regarded as one of the most successful captains of India and till recently the stats proved this. However, a certain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has gone onto eclipse some of the records.
Not just captaincy, Ganguly as a batsman made a huge mark and his trademark shots on the off-side and the voice of Geoffrey Boycott crowning him the 'Prince of Kolkata' will forever be etched in the memories of cricketing fans.
Fans and former cricketers poured in with their wishes, making #HappyBirthdayDada one of the top trends on Twitter.
Whatever success I could achieve in Test Cricket,I truly attribute it to the wonderful support you gave me @SGanguly99 . #HappyBirthdayDada pic.twitter.com/wJJRvL6g90
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) July 8, 2017
#HappyBirthdayDada! It was always a pleasure to play with you, @SGanguly99! Have a good one! pic.twitter.com/CcG75sqJH4
— sachin tendulkar (@sachin_rt) July 8, 2017
Wishing dearest @SGanguly99 many happy returns of the day lots of love dadi. pic.twitter.com/aayhy5VFWa
— yuvraj singh (@YUVSTRONG12) July 8, 2017
Happy birthday dada! @SGanguly99
— Shikhar Dhawan (@SDhawan25) July 8, 2017
To the person who changed the direction of Indian cricket through his captaincy, Many happy returns of the day Dada @SGanguly99
— Rohit Sharma (@ImRo45) July 8, 2017
#HappyBirthdayDada ,the man who brought about a great transition in Indian cricket. Forever a legend @SGanguly99 ! May you have a grt life. pic.twitter.com/nfeaCKfIrT
— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) July 8, 2017
Happy Birthday to the Dada of Indian Cricket. The man who changed Indian Cricket for the good forever #HappyBirthdayDada pic.twitter.com/YPXJ2LZidH
— Hemang Badani (@hemangkbadani) July 7, 2017
Many many happy returns of the day dada! Hope you continue to show direction to #bengal cricket as always! @SGanguly99 #HappyBirthdayDada pic.twitter.com/hpptfaw10L
— Pragyan Ojha (@pragyanojha) July 7, 2017
Happy Birthday to one of India's finest cricketers, Sourav Ganguly!
— ICC (@ICC) July 8, 2017
What is your favourite memory from his career? pic.twitter.com/ufGXZVl91e
Happy Birthday, @SGanguly99. Here's wishing you a great year ahead #HappyBirthdayDada pic.twitter.com/42tPO25fjN
— BCCI (@BCCI) July 8, 2017
The true spirit of #meninblue ! @SGanguly99 #HappyBirthdayDada pic.twitter.com/COLLQ8uua8
— Mirchi RJ Sameer (@sameer_nandoori) July 8, 2017
Some feelings can not be expressed in words. This picture proves what Dada means to us.#HappyBirthdayDada pic.twitter.com/OMBtHQuNC4
— #RSS (@ichetangupta) July 8, 2017
Movie on Sachin Tendulkar showed the rise of Sachin. Movie on @SGanguly99 will show rise and rise of India. #HappyBirthdayDada pic.twitter.com/EcfISYYzc6
— NIKHIL DHANRESHA (@Nikh747) July 8, 2017
#HappyBirthdayDada pic.twitter.com/l8FU8JBNeW
— RAVIKUMAR (@MEDASARIRAVI) July 8, 2017
Ganguly made 7,212 runs in 113 Test matches at an average of 42.17. While in ODIs, Ganguly made 11,363 runs in 311 games.
Ganguly took over the captaincy reigns from Mohammad Azharuddin in early 2000. At that time Indian cricket was under turmoil with match-fixing allegations labelled against some of the players and falling fortunes for the team.
Ganguly immediately brought in some fresh faces and quickly changed the way the team thought and played. In came the youthful exuberance and aggressiveness of the likes of Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh, to mix with the experience of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid.
He brought about a certain aggressiveness to the team that Indian cricket had rarely seen before. India had a poor overseas record prior to Ganguly, however, under the Bengal cricketer, Team India won 11 Tests out of the 28 they played abroad.
Ganguly finally called it quits in 2008 after the home series against Australia.