End game for Sourav Ganguly the player in IPL?

Sourav Ganguly became the third captain this season to rest himself, after Daniel Vettori and Kumar Sangakkara, but this was mere detail, says a report in The Times Of India. India’s most successful captain had categorically stated on the eve that he would remain the captain for the remaining three games, despite criticism following another unsuccessful campaign for the team.

“So what happened in a span of 24 hours that led to the volte face that saw Steven Smith replacing the Prince of Kolkata as skipper? The nudge had come on Thursday when the franchise owners made their views clear - that Ganguly would be retained next season only as a mentor. With Sahara group’s chairman Subrata Roy making the statement, the writing was on the wall for Ganguly,” says the report, adding that along with Ganguly, the team also rested Ashish Nehra, Murali Kartik and Mithun Manhas - all on the wrong side of 30 - although the three had missed games earlier this season too.

Besides Ganguly’s poor form with the bat, selection has been another cause for disgruntlement among the rank and file.

A report in Hindustan Times says that a day after Sahara chief Subroto Roy announced that Pune skipper Sourav Ganguly “wanted to sit out” of the Warriors’ last three games and Ganguly insisted that “I am the captain for the whole season”, the confusion over “will he or won’t he” got over when Aussie Steve Smith led the team for their penultimate home game against the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

“That Ganguly would ‘sit out’ was common knowledge since Friday morning but it got confirmed the moment Smith, who is trying to return to the international fold, addressed the team huddle ahead of the warmups in the evening. While Ganguly listened to him patiently, he headed back to the dugout while acknowledging the cheering fans,” says the report.

According to a report in The Indian Express, a short video featuring former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly's life, full of controversies and glorious achievements, in a typical Bollywood potboiler style has become a rage on the Internet.

“Within four days of the video going viral, the three-minute trailer of 'Sourav Ganguly - The Movie' has had more than 250,000 hits on YouTube so far. The video, which highlights Ganguly's leadership, man management and crisis management skills, has been uploaded by a private health insurance company that wants to develop elements of this movie later on in the form of short videos for the cyberworld,” adds the report.