Its Sourav Ganguly in discussion again..... The latest news is that he has left to play county cricket for Northamptonshire; we all hope he will do justice to what he is capable of.

However, the issue today is not what he is doing or what he can do... I would like to share a piece of email written by a person who is NOT a Bengali, yet like many others (to which critics may disagree) likes Ganguly, the leader; to none other than our present Indian coach, Greg Chappell. This was an email written to an esteemed English daily of Mumbai when England came here with a depleted side... the piece goes like this:


Dear Mr. Chappell,

How are you? Sure you must be enjoying the heat which Andrew Flintoff, the Captain of depleted English team is facing this season. The weather is very hot, but Mr Chappell you must be really chilling out in the company of the young and energetic Indian Cricket Team, hand picked by you, with the help of Indian selectors or should I say a selector in particular.
I am not denying the fact that your team has done well to win the One Day Series against England and I must say, this authenticates all your theories and experiments on Indian Team , but do not forget Mr Chappell, not one win came easily. But of course, you believe only in winning, and if the team is winning , then the rest is not important, as this saves your job. Isn't it Mr Chappell? No wonder you started playing smart from the very beginning and did everything possible to have all good cards in your hand, after all to win a person must have all good cards in hand. Is it not so Mr Chappell?
Well, this is where our thoughts do not match . I am a teacher, and I believe that for any competition to win, my team should comprise of few tough nuts to crack, who I can make use of when time demands. You see, unlike you, I am very sure of my inter-personal skills Mr Chappell. I like to deal with difficult people, but I am sorry to say , you were not game enough to take up the challenge in this regard. Your dislike of Sourav Ganguly , the most successful cricket captain India has ever produced, has proved one thing to me, you do not like challenges . You cannot handle strong personalities, and you cannot manage a person with an attitude. So with the help of few people, who claim to be well wishers of Indian cricket you decided to get rid of the person unceremoniously Were you so scared Mr Chappell? What kind of a coach you are, if you cannot handle one strong personality in your dressing room? You couldnot respect the Indian captain who took over the reins of the team when many stalwarts were not willing to take up this challenge, as they were more keen on sharpening their batting prowess. But now, I see, many want to cash in the glamour, which maligned Indian captain has brought to the post! Why did you not stand by the same Indian captain who stood by Yuvraj and Sehwag when the whole media and selectors were gunning for their heads? Is it not the same Yuvraj who is
winning you games now Mr Chappell? And who can deny your unflinching support to Sehwag, in whom you have found your captain courageous, despite all misgivings? Mr Chappell, all said and done, you have brought a lot of pain to the heart of emotional cricket fans of
India, Win or lose, we would rather enjoy an animated Ganguly on the field than a robotic another person.
I would end my letter by wishing you and the Indian team many more wins in the future. After all " win " is what you want all the time. No matter what . Is it not so Mr Chappell?
May God bless you in your future ventures as well and your luck does not run dry on you.

Yours truly,
Mr. Shukla.