Report: Dravid and Chappell behind Ganguly Exclusion

Sourav Ganguly was supposed to be in the Indian cricket team for the Ahmedabad Test. It was to be the final opportunity for him to either prove himself or make a graceful exit. This is what was planned in a chat the selectors had on the eve of their formal meeting on Wednesday.

His ouster was not as unanimous as it seems. Highly placed sources say at least two of the five selectors -- Ranjib Biswal (East Zone) and South Zone selector V.B. Chandrashekhar (said to be virulently anti-Ganguly) -- were in favour of giving the former skipper a final chance to make a dignified exit.

On the fourth day of the Kotla Test, the selectors had an informal meeting. They decided they would talk to Ganguly and explain that they were giving him this last opportunity and if things didn't work out, he should use it to call it quits.

"It was decided that Kiran More would speak to him in his capacity as the selection committee chairman," says a selector. "I don't know what happened, why Kiran did not speak, because he obviously didn't and this didn't make sense. In any case, what happened the next day at the selection meeting overrode everything else, because both captain and coach were definite he had no place in the team." More could not be contacted.

"Chappell was extremely aggressive, as he always is, and spoke at length against Ganguly," says another selector. "He was hell-bent on ensuring that Ganguly did not make it to the squad. He said Ganguly was dividing the dressing room; that he would not mix with the other players, he refused to speak much or share in the joking around.”

"Chappell said Ganguly had an attitude problem and was a bad fielder. He said having him in the squad would be detrimental to India."

Sources said what was crucial was that Rahul Dravid was very clear about two things. One, Ganguly had no place in his eventual scheme of things as far as the playing XI was concerned and second, if he was there, he could not have him sitting in the dressing room.

"This was important. We knew that even if we picked Sourav, Chappell was capable of not playing him and Dravid was clearly uncomfortable with having his former captain in the dressing room. From his point of view, understandable. It would be very awkward all around for instance, if Ganguly had to carry drinks."

Apparently, Chappell did not want to play Ganguly even in the rain-marred Chennai Test.

At which point, the only selector around, pointed out that to pick him in the squad and not play him would be completely unfair and give rise to more commotion.

Incidentally, sources say one of the selectors was also told there was no point in his supporting Ganguly as it would be taken wrongly and the Kolkattan was quite capable of making some outburst in the Bengali media. This though could not be confirmed from the selector.

Asked whether there was a discussion on whether Wasim Jaffer ("a unanimous, apolitical choice") could replace Gautam Gambhir, the logical thing to do, sources say Chappell spoke for Gambhir.

"He said Gautam had potential and was already a very reserved person. He thought if we dropped him now, he would withdraw into his shell completely and it would be very difficult to draw him out thereafter."

In case you're wondering why Zaheer Khan is still out after a stupendous run in domestic cricket, well, the coach apparently doesn't want him either. "But we'll see," says a selector.

"We figured in Ahmedabad, we didn't need another paceman. For Pakistan, we're definitely going to think about Zaheer."

On a last note, everyone involved says BCCI president Sharad Pawar was not involved at all.


http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1575668,0035.htm

To be honest, now that Dravid has been chosen as captain, I think it would help him if Ganguly is not in the team.

It can be hard for a new captain to impose their own authority, when the former captain is still in the side.

Ganguly's removal was necessary but unfortunately it happened in an unpleasant manner .Greg and Dravid are working on a long term plan and have kept certain standards with regard to performance of each player( this involves physical fitness , mental fitness , bowling ,batting , athletic ability on field , throwing and catching abilities , running between the wickets , willing to bat at any order depending upon the situation etc ) and clearly Gangluy falls much below the parameters of those standrads .It is not for batting alone that he is being dropped . Yuvaraj very well fits many of the standards required by Greg and hence he is the natural replacement for Ganguly .

He is inconsistent ... but that is the last 2-3 years ... before that, he was very consistent ...

I think he is suffering from a psychological problem rather than a technical problem in his batting ...

If Geoffrey Boycott were to be believed (Form is temporary, class is permanent) I think he very well deserves to be in the elite 11 ....

Ganguly just needs time to get his toach and form back whilst playing in the domestic games........I want Ganguly to leave on a high note.

poor Ganguly.

poor ganguly ? WHY ?

This whole thing has become to big and Ganguly need to speak out in public to calm the people from calcutta and say that he retires form cricket for the sake of indian cricket.

It seems that some think he is more important then the team !

What a drama this is! Star Plus/Sony etc. would be well advised to televise this reality show-cum-soap opera at the expense of those soppy family dramas.

Seriously though, it appears clear that Chappel/Dravid have made a decision to dump Ganguly and move on - but messy board politics and the pressures of a fanatical hero-worshipping fanbase are making it difficult for them. Dravid is not even playing in the last test due to illness, but the selectors have called up Mohammad Kaif- an even surer sign that Ganguly is out of the plans.

A strong performance from India in this test, with Yuvraj/Kaif firing should seal Ganguly's career. That is what the selectors will be hoping for. Should India lose however and Yuvraj/Kaif fail, the knives will be out in full force and mass effigy bonfire night will be declared. Under this scenario, there will be immense pressure on Chappel/Dravid to reinstate Ganguly for the Pakistan tour, and its difficult to see how they will remain firm under such a hostile attack.

In truth, this was a situation the administration has brought upon itself. They should have bitten the bullet following the home series vs Pakistan. At that point with the public anger also on their side, they could have moved on. Instead Ganguly comes back with a scratchy century against a pathetic Zimbok outfit and a couple 30/40 scores and becomes a hero in the Indian public's eyes again, putting the administration in a sticky situation.

The way things are being portrayed by some in the Indian establishment, in the title of this thread we should replace "exclusion" with "execution" !!!

My dear Friend Pakistan had around 7 former Captians playin at one time

Yes they did.

I think Inzamam's job has been made a little easier by the fact that there was only one former captain (ignoring stand in captains) in the team when he took over - Moin Khan. And his immediate predecessor as captain - Rashid Latif - was not in the side.

In Pakistan it has been easier for the captain to establish their authority over a young group of players as opposed to senior players who have captained the team before.

If a slector is discussing what happens in the selection room with the media then he should be sacked first. If no one can put a name to the information that is being passed on then it could be just rumors that started out as a joke. No name, no validity.

Could be just Ganguly supporters trying to bring down Chappell.