Ganguly's decision to play for Bengal gives jitters to TN

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly's decision to assist Bengal midway in the season in Ranji Trophy against Tamil Nadu in their fifth of seven league matches in Elite-A group has given jitters to Tamil Nadu bowlers, who have not performed to their potential so far.

The four-day fifth round of league match between Bengal and Tamil Nadu starts at IIT Chemplast grounds here on Wednesday.

Bengal are now in fifth position on the table with eight points from four matches. On the other hand, Tamil Nadu are in joint second spot with 10 points, along with Gujarat, behind the leaders Mumbai with 14 points.

Bengal coach and former India player Woorkeri Raman has found it tough to field totally fit 11 players in earlier matches this season and Ganguly's return should help the side perform in order to push themselves up the points table.

"We managed with a squad of 12 players, but I must say the boys have measured up well under the circumstances. In this context, Ganguly's presence will definitely make an impact and hopefully, we will be able to do well," Raman said.

"Against Assam, we didn't have (Ashok) Dinda who was not fit. His replacement Shami Ahmed contacted viral fever and was off the field for two hours. We had our chances, but didn't take them. Our game against Tamil Nadu is crucial for us," Raman, who was Tamil Nadu's coach for four years before shifting back to Bengal this season, added.

Bengal, who are eyeing an outright win to make sure of progressing further in the tournament, might face lot of hurdles in realising it as Tamil Nadu's top and middle order batsmen have been in good nick.

Opener Abhinav Mukund (double century plus), K B Arun Karthik (century plus) and Badrinath have cracked centuries against Delhi and Saurashtra and also have decent scores in the other two matches.

Despite having Ganguly, capable of performing well with both bat and ball, Bengal will miss the services of wicketkeeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha, who is with the Indian team for the ODI series against New Zealand.

"Saha's replacement Sreevats Goswami for our match against Tamil Nadu has also gone home due to viral fever. So it has been a bit of struggle for us this season. But there is not much you can about it," Raman said.

Tamil Nadu, meanwhile, would also be going into the match without two of their key players -- off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and opener Murali Vijay, both of whom are away on National duty against the Kiwis.

Read more at: http://cricket.ndtv.com/storypage.aspx?id=SPOEN20100161739&nid=69615&cp

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Sourav Ganguly to play Ranji Trophy for Bengal again

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly will come out from his first-class retirement all over again as he is likely to play for Bengal in the upcoming Ranji Trophy match against Tamil Nadu in Chennai from December 1.

Ganguly's last first-class match was against Delhi last season when he scored 152 to save Bengal who were in the relegation zone. The main reason for participation is obviously keeping himseld fit with IPL in mind.

Bengal are currently placed fifth in the Group A while Tamil Nadu are second in the group.
With several players falling sick due either dengue or viral fever, the CAB couldn't take any risk but to send Ganguly to Chennai on an SOS basis.

"Sourav will be travelling to Chennai tomorrow and is expected to practice with the team," CAB joint secretary Sujan Mukherjee informed.

Along with Sourav, Bengal U-22 wicketkeeper Gitimoy Basu will also play make his first-class debut. First-choice keeper Wriddhiman Saha is on national duty while his understudy Shreevats Goswami is down with viral fever.

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IPL 4: Sourav Ganguly no more a Kolkata Knight?

It is all but over for former India skipper Sourav Ganguly and the Kolkata Knight Riders.

Ganguly has lost his ‘icon player’ status for the IPL 4 and according to sources, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are not interested in retaining the former India captain.

Knights are among the high-profile teams in the Indian Premier League with Shah Rukh Khan its co-owner. But for the last three years, they failed to reach the knockout stage. The team management wants a complete overhaul of the squad.

“It’s up to our coach Dav Whatmore to take a final call on all cricket-related matters. For the last three years we didn’t have anything to show for it and we want to resurrect things,” a KKR official said on condition for anonymity.

If the Knights eventually decide to part ways with Ganguly, he will go under the hammer in the players’ auction for the IPL 4. Ganguly was one of the ‘icon players’ in the IPL and reportedly got something in the range of Rs 4.13 crore for a three-year contract. This time, the BCCI has set up five categories for the players and the southpaw figures in Grade C with a base price of Rs 92 lakh.

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No takers for seniors in IPL IV

With the deadline for retention of IPL players six days away, there’s a rush to offload players. This paper had reported that barring Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings, none of the IPL franchises were interested in retaining the big names.

Attribute it to cost-cutting, some of the seniors may have to run for cover in the auction. It came as no surprise that Virender Sehwag has emerged as the only one who signed the dotted line with Delhi Daredevils. Director of GMR Sports PB Vanchi confirmed the development to Mumbai Mirror: “I can confirm Sehwag has signed the contract with us. As far as the other retentions are concerned, there is still some time. We’ll make an announcement when we finalise them.”

Now smarter and wiser, corporate have understood the dynamics of T20 teams and are just not interested in star allure. In the first edition, the franchises had relied on iconic players for gate revenue and merchandising until Rajasthan Royals showed that the team that wins is hot.

The franchises change in approach could be gauged from the fact that Sourav Ganguly’s drawing powers have no bearing on Kolkata Knight Riders anymore.

Curiously, Ganguly has again decided to turn up for Bengal in this Ranji season. In context of the IPL, the timing is interesting.

Chris Gayle was the only name the Knights were interested in.

KKR however have second thoughts on Gayle because going by the Future Tours and Programme window, he will not be available for the first 14 days of the IPL.

Meanwhile, indications are that Rahul Dravid will not feature in Bangalore Royal Challengers scheme.

Virat Kohli and Ross Taylor are the only names that are likely to be retained. Interestingly Ban-galore are not entirely averse to the idea of persisting with Anil Kumble, for they believe they have only benefited from Kumble’s leadership skills and performance in all the previous editions.

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Sachin, MSD's IPL base price Rs 1.84 crore, Sourav's Rs 92 lakh

NEW DELHI: Around 62 Indian cricketers will be up for auction for the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and the legendary Sachin Tendulkar in the top-bracket of cricketers valued at Rs 1.84 crore.

However, Tendulkar and Dhoni are likely to be retained by their respective franchises -- Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.

Former India captains Sourav Ganguly , Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid along with VVS Laxman are in the third bracket which has a base price of Rs 92 lakh.

The cricketers who will command the highest base price of Rs 1.84 crore are Sachin Tendulkar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh.

The second bracket is that of Rs 1.3 crore where Twenty20 specialist Yusuf Pathan finds a place alongside speedster Zaheer Khan and the talented Suresh Raina.

Similarly stand-in ODI captain Gautam Gambhir, who didn't have a great IPL-II and III, has been priced in the third bracket at Rs 92 lakh along with the likes of Virat Kohli, Irfan Pathan, Robin Uthappa, Ashish Nehra, Ishant Sharma, Praveen Kumar and veterans such as Ganguly, Kumble, Dravid and Laxman.

The fourth bracket is of Rs 46 lakh which consists of domestic cricketers and the fringe India players who have represented the country since 2005.

Bengal players Wriddhiman Saha, Manoj Tiwary, Ashok Dinda along with Saurashtra's Cheteshwar Pujara are some of the players in the fourth bracket.

The fifth and final bracket is of Rs 23 lakh where there are India discards such as Manpreet Gony, Sudeep Tyagi, Sridharan Sriram to name a few.

The five brackets of base price: 1st: Rs 1.84 crore; 2nd: Rs 1.3 crore; 3rd: Rs 92 lakh; 4th: Rs 46 lakh; 5th bracket: Rs 23 lakh List of Players Up for auction (In alphabetical order) Andhra: Yelakka Venugopal Rao; Assam: Sridharan Sriram Baroda: Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Ambati Rayudu, Munaf Patel;

Bengal: Sourav Ganguly, Manoj Tiwary, Wriddhiman Saha, Ashok Dinda;

Delhi: Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Ashish Nehra, Ishant Sharma

Gujarat: Parthiv Patel, Siddharth Trivedi Haryana: Joginder Sharma, Amit Mishra Hyderabad: VVS Laxman, T Suman, Pragyan Ojha Jharkhand: Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Saurabh Tiwary Karnataka: Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid, Manish Pandey, Abhimanyu Mithun, R Vinay Kumar, Robin Uthappa

Kerala: S Sreesanth Mumbai: Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan, Wasim Jaffer, Abhishek Raut, Rohit Sharma, Abhishek Nayar, Ramesh Powar

Madhya Pradesh: Naman Ojha Punjab: Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Manpreet Gony, VRV Singh

Railways: Murali Kartik Rajasthan: Pankaj Singh Saurahstra: Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara Tamil Nadu: Dinesh Karthik, S Badrinath, R Sathish, R Ashwin, M Vijay, L Balaji

Uttar Pradesh: Mohammed Kaif, Suresh Raina, Praveen Kumar, Sudeep Tyagi, Piyush Chawla, Rudra Pratap Singh

Vidarbha: Umesh Yadav.

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Dhoni's strength is hitting, not nudging around : Sourav

India practically crushed the Kiwis at Nagpur and this victory reminded me of the late 90s and early 2000s, when India used to spin teams out on surfaces which spun. It used to be complete domination of the home team both with bat and ball and it was good to see that happen once again.

At the beginning of the series, I had honestly expected this sort of result in all the three Test matches but was a bit surprised by the resistance of the Kiwis. I must say, Vettori and his boys deserve full credit for the way they played. But somehow it looked a different effort this Test match, where the New Zealand batting didn't show any resistance at all. They were completely dominated by a good and disciplined Indian bowling.

The seamers did it in the first innings and the spinners were on song in the second. It was heartening to see the rhythm of Sreesanth and Ishant in the match and that of Harbhajan in the second innings. The pitch had a lot more bounce than the other two centres and India rightly used it to their fullest advantage.

The Indian batting on the other hand was brilliant once again. Rahul Dravid has silenced his critics with a magnificent knock. He has fought hard in this series and has shown a lot of character, for youngsters in the team to learn, especially the likes of Suresh Raina, who had an off-series. Sehwag continued his good form and the captaincy responsibility on Gambhir brought out a good knock from him. It showed what the faith of the selectors and captain can do to someone.

Dhoni also batted the way he should always do, as hitting is his strength and nudging around is not his cup of tea. His form at number seven will be very important for the team on the tour of South Africa, where the conditions are going to be different.

The selectors have rested key players from the upcoming one-day series against New Zealand and rightly so, as India has a tough tour to South Africa and a big World Cup coming. It is important for the key members of the team to remain mentally and physically fresh.

Going early to South Africa will help the key members to tune their minds for the series and get used to the conditions. It will turn out to be a huge advantage, which one will see at the start of the first Test at Centurion. The Test series will be followed by the one-day series, where a lot of young names have been inducted. It's going to be a huge opportunity for them to do well and get their names in for the World Cup.

The Kiwis will have to go fresh into the one-day series on hand, which should be even-stevens, as a lot of experienced Indians are being rested.

--> COurtesy : SIFY

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Ganguly to join Madame Tussauds..!

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East Bengal beat Mohammedan SC to each in the Final of Mohammedan SC platinum Cup 2010 - Full MAtch Preview..!!

COURTESY : KOLKATTA FOOTBALL

12 Nov(M1):East Bengal 1 - 0 Mohammedan SC (YBK - FT..)

KEB: Nasim, Ravinder, Saikat, Sunil, Gurwinder, Alvito ( Lalchwama), Sanju(c), Sushant( Biswajit), Bikash( Assem), Robin, Budhiram.

MSC: Manas(Pryant), Farooq, Debkumar, Habibur ( Suman), Maria, Mumtaj, Denson, Cristofar, Hassan, Rafiq, Sourav Ganguly(C)( Joshimar)

1': Match starts. 150 years old Sheffield FC vs 121 years old Mohun Bagan at Salt Lake Stadium.

1': Right sided attack of Bagan but weak crossed by Ashim.

3': Sheffield are in Red jersey and Black shorts

4': Free kick of Sheffield. Rahul Kumar fouled Greg. No Impact in free Kick.

7': Slow match is going on. No score yet.

7': Dipendu of Bagan took a long ranger, went away.

8': Nice attacked by Sheffield. Mathew went through right side and crossed but it was too long, went out.

9': Bagan won a corner through a counter attack.

10': Good corner of Dipendu Duwari of Bagan went out.

12': Mathew Rony attacked from right side but Suman Dutta blocked him

14': Still no score.

16': Kingshuk long ball from right cleared.

18': First corner of Sheffield from right side of Bagan Box. Rabin shot cleared. Again corner of Sheffield opposite side.

19': Sam missed an opportunity with his left footer who got the ball from Mat.

22': Long ranger of Burnsley went direct to Bagan keeper Sangram.

24': Suman Dutta's left footer went direct to Sheffield Keeper Shaun.

27':Match is slow pace. Nice saved by Sangram. Burnsley got a ball from behind and advancing Sangram blocked him well.

28': Free Kick of Bagan. Nazimudin shot cleared by Gavin by a header. Corner for Bagan.

29': Corner of Nazimuddin cleared by Shefield Defence.

30': Jaken to Sumon to Nazimuddin in right but he was ofside.

31': Yellow card to Suman Dutta of Bagan who fouled Ryan.

33': Nazimuddin of Bagan well shoot from right but went away.

34': Bagan is attacking only one striker in upfront.

37': Eye catching football is not playing today. Slow football is going on.

39': 4th corner of Bagan. Nazimuddin corner went out.

40': Nazimuddin well attacked from right. Cleared by corner.

41': Rahul Kumar's corner missed the target.

42': Nice crossed by Ashim from right but no follower of Bagan with him, Ball went out.

43': Matt Rony well effort from right but missed.

44': Nice effort of Ashim, beat two players and his left footer went out.

45': 1 minute more as injury time.

HT: End of First Half. No score.

46: 2nd half started. One change in Sheffield team. Sam out Fox in.

47': Bagan good effort. Satish kumar header missed the target off a right sided cross of Jaken.

48': Counter attack of Shefield. Matt's shot well saved by Sangram.

49': More and more attacked by Sheffield. Another attack of Matt from right and this time Sangram well blocked.

52': Corner for Bagan. Satish kumar's shot cleared by corner.

53': 7th corner of Bagan. No impact .

55': Shefield Well cleared an attack of Bagan.

57': Still the match is goalless. Bagan misused their 8th corner.

58': Bagan missed a scoring opportunity. Santosh Oraw missed. Nice saved by Sheffield Keeper Shaun.

60': Sheffield is now playing slight defencive way. Bagan is attacking more and more. Ashim Biswas offside.

63': 2nd corner of Sheffield in right. Crish shot cleared by Harpreet.

64': Bagan is going to change a player. Souvik is warming up

66': Penalty in favor of Sheffield. Bagan Keeper Sangram and defender Kingshuk's sandwich fouled to Jordon in an one to one situation. Jordon is injured and out of the field.

68': Player changed by Bagan. Jaken out and Souvik in.

70': Saved...Saved... Sangram of Bagan well saved Ashely's spot kick. No Goal.

72': Callum Ward came in place of injured Jordon of Sheffield.

74': Both teams are trying to score. Bagan Keeper Sangram saved Penalty few minutes ago.

75': Souvik to Dipendu in left. Beautiful dribbled by Dipendu. Crossed but no Bagan player in Sheffield Box.

77': Ashim from right got a long ball, his left footer deflected from a defender of Sheffield and out.

78':Yellow card to Sam who fouled Bagan keeper Sangram in an aerial ball.

80': Free kick for Sheffield just out side the Bagan Box. Harpreet fouled Chris.

81': Nice kick of Chris and beautiful saved by Sangram.

85': Bagan Midfielder Snehasish cane in place of Dipendu Dwari.

87': Bagan is fighting with two regular players. Satish Kumar's good effort went away. Corner for Bagan.

89': Souvik Shot well saved by Sheffield Keeper by a corner. Snehasish is going to take the shot.

90': GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL ...Ashim Biswas scored for Bagan from corner of Snehasish. 3 minutes added by referee.

90'+2': Bagan is leading 1-0.

90'+3': Nostalgia 1911 when barefooted Mohun Bagan players beat East York Shire Regiment to win IFA Shield.

90'+3': Match End. Mohun Bagan win against Sheffield FC.

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Sourav has a ball and passed the fitness test with flying colours -- > Telegraph

Calcutta: Sourav Ganguly’s love for Manchester United lasted till former England skipper David Beckham played for the English Premier League club. But his love for football has become folklore amongst Sourav fans across the country.

It is widely known that the former India cricket captain was an avid soccer player during his school days. And thousands of Sourav fans got a glimpse of Maharaj kicking the ball around in style for Mohammedan Sporting Club on Friday.

Turning out for the club in a match against East Bengal in the Mohammedan Sporting Platinum Jubilee Cup, Sourav showed he is no novice in the sport. He might not have scored a goal, but rallied toe-to-toe in his first professional football match.

Sourav, donning the number 99 jersey, knit together some wonderful passes with fellow striker Christopher.

But the Nigerian fluffed plenty of times failing to give Mohammedan Sporting an early lead.

Sourav passed the fitness test with flying colours, on Friday, and scored brownie points for some cheeky passes and a side volley that almost got his side into the lead.

Twenty-four minutes into the match, Mohammedan Sporting got a corner kick.

The ball deflected off Mumtaz Akhtar’s header and Sourav launched a side volley in quick reflex action. East Bengal ’keeper Naseem Akhtar parried it easily, but everyone cheered Sourav’s effort from outside the box.

Again seconds before the lemon break, Sourav befuddled an East Bengal defender by suddenly changing direction before releasing the ball for Christopher.

Sourav enjoyed the 60 minutes that he spent on the field and said: “I was playing football after a long time. It was a wonderful experience. It was also a good test of fitness.”

Though Sourav passed the test, his team failed to win the match after East Bengal scored from a late Sanju Pradhan penalty.

Earlier, Mohun Bagan knocked Sheffield FC out of the Mohammedan Sporting Platinum Jubilee Cup, in the meet’s inaugural match.

Bagan defeated the English club 1-0. Incidentally, in 1911 Bagan had vanquished another Yorkshire club, East Yorkshire Regiment 2-1 to lift the IFA Shield.

With a handful of near misses from both sides, the first half was hardly eventful and concluded goalless. Things continued to remain the same throughout the second, as the match dragged on to extra time.

It was in the first minute of extra time that Ashim Biswas turned the tide and drove home the winning goal off a Snehasish Chakraborty corner.

Sheffield had been awarded a penalty in the 67th minute as Kinshuk Debnath tripped Jordan Eagers.

However, Bagan ’keeper Sangram Mukherjee saved Ashley Burbeary’s shot.

For Bagan, who had fielded their third team, the tie was a tester of sorts.

“It was my third team, but I was not taking the tie lightly, or treating it as a distraction.

“They are talented boys who generally would not get a chance to play,” coach Stanley Rozario said.

Sheffield manager and player Gavin Smith was all praise for the green and maroon brigade.

“It was a tough tie. The (Bagan) players were a talented bunch. We are not used to playing in such conditions,” he said.

On Sunday arch-rivals East Bengal and Mohun Bagan meet in the final at the Salt Lake Stadium.

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Soccer or cricket, Dada rules -- > Times Of India

Abhishek Ganguly | TNN

Kolkata: Champions are champions, be it on a cricket or a soccer pitch!

Footballer Sourav Ganguly proved it at the Salt Lake Stadium on Friday when he donned Mohammedan Sporting Club’s jersey No.99 against East Bengal in the second match of MSC’s Platinum Jubilee Cup.

Not only did he stay on the field for exactly an hour but Mohammedan Sporting’s best chance of the day was courtesy the former India captain — a brilliantly-executed side volley from just inside the box that forced rival custodian Naseem Akhtar into a diving save.

For the crowd at the stadium, used to see volleys balloon over the top, it was a treat to watch and they lapped up every bit of their favourite son’s footballing exploits.

Even East Bengal coach Trevor Morgan sounded impressed. “That was really a good shot. He is a good player,” Morgan said after the match.

And, if you think that was all he did on Friday, you are grossly mistaken.

Never did it seem that Sourav was out of place among 21 footballers though, by his own admission, he was playing after a long time.

The number of balls he laid-off for the strikers — especially Cristopher — made one thing quite clear that he was by no means making up the numbers for his team, as he had indicated in a lighter vein on Thursday.

He took a tumble while trying to snatch a ball from an East Bengal player even before he had a first touch of the ball. But, when he did in the fifth minute, the pass that rolled towards Cristopher was inch-perfect.

And those who thought had Sourav was taking this match lightly, had to see the frustration writ large on his face when Cristopher made a mess of the chance. Then came a delightful chip to free the left-winger which also went in vain.

The former Team India captain stayed in the thick of things all the time, even sprinting a good 25 yards to retrieve a ball from Sanju Pradhan who had snatched it away from him and falling back to aid the defence when the team was under pressure.

While many had thought that Sourav would not take the field after the break, he did and stayed on for 15 more minutes in which also he created a goal-scoring opportunity for the team.

He was replaced in the 60th minute by Chirag United’s Brazilian striker Joshimar as the crowd gave him a standing ovation..

Probably their only regret, including those of EB supporters, was that he could not find the back of the net which would have been the proverbial icing on the cake.

All in all, Sourav once again proved why he is such a revered figure. Even though his team lost 0-1 in the end, he was the winner!

This team list is certainly one for the keeps as not everyday one would find his name on the roster of a football team. “I liked it. It was also a test of my fitness,” was all that he had to say after the match.

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Saurav Gangully Playing Football, Mohammedan V/s East Bengal - Highlights

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Sourav hopes to start

Calcutta : Sourav Ganguly was unveiled as the brand ambassador for the Mohammedan Sporting Platinum Jubilee Cup that will be held from Friday to commemorate the club’s 75th year of their first Calcutta Football League triumph in 1934. “It is a matter of great honour and privilege for me,” Sourav said at a news conference, here on Thursday .

Sourav will play for the black and white brigade against East Bengal at the Salt Lake Stadium on Friday. “This is the first time I’ll be playing for a big club. It’s all about participating. I’d like to play for 15 to 20 minutes. I’ll also look to avoid injuries as they are professional players,” he said in a lighter vein.

Asked whether jersey No. 99 was of his choice, Sourav said: “Numbers do not matter as I will be making up the numbers on the field. “The coach will decide when I will play. But I would like to start as there will be a lot of excitement then.”

The first match will be a clash of history when the world’s oldest club Sheffield FC, under the leadership of Greg Wright, and the oldest club in Asia — Mohun Bagan — take on each other.

Mohammedan Sporting have taken three players from Chirag United and one from Kalighat MS on lien. The Chirag players are Denson Devadas, Joshimar and Mohammed Rafique, while Christopher plays for Kalighat MS.

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Young cricketers should learn from Haider episode: Ganguly

Former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly on Thursday said the incident involving Pakistan wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider should be an eye opener to the young cricketers. "Zulqarnain incident is an eye opener. I have played top level cricket for 14-15 years but never faced such a situation.I shudder to think that someone picks up a phone and gives a threat," Ganguly told reporters here on the eve of the Mohammedan Sporting Platinum Jubilee Cup to be held from Friday.

The former left-handed batsman, however said that he did not agree with Haider's reaction and his decision to take political asylum in England.

"He should have played on," said Ganguly, adding, "It is a lesson for the young cricketers and they should be very careful about betting."

Sourav expressed surprise over the happenings in Pakistan cricket . “In the last three months, lot of things are happening in Pakistan and it has been an eye opener for me. First, the spot-fixing controversy and, now, this Haider issue. It’s alarming. But I am sure they will come out of this very soon,” he said.

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Ganguly praises Tigers

Former Indian Captain Sourav Ganguly hailed Bangladesh for the movement they eff prefab since travel into Run cricket just 10 eld ago on this day against his India.Ganguly had tossed the strike with Naimur Rahman in Bangladesh's initiative Examine on November 10, 2000, mark a new travelling for the Tigers in top adorn cricket.'I can still recollect the day.

It was really a memorable occasion for Bangladesh,' Ganguly told reporters at the Hazarat Shahjalal Airfield on Weekday after he arrived in Dacca to celebrate the 100 days countdown of Mankind Cup 2011.

'They have prefabricated 400 runs against us, so obviously they had some wellborn players,' he said.

'But now they fuck restored much. They acquire got players like Sakib, Tamim. I eff seen Tamim scoring a 100 against England at Lord's this period,' else Ganguly, the most undefeated Asiatic Tryout leader.

'I also saw them playacting against New Zealand newly. If they can defend the uniformness they feature got a groovy try to do good in the Domain Cup,' he said.

Ganguly, nonetheless, urged the Bangladesh Cricket Dwell not to get cragfast up with a system exclusive for the upcoming Man Cup.'They should rather await beyond the Group Cup. The most primal action is Run cricket. If you can do shaft, you possess got a possibleness to do recovered in any information,' he said.

Ganguly, who now plays only Twenty20 cricket for the Amerindian Premier League garb City Ennoble Riders, said he always enjoyed arrival to Bangladesh.

'It's same arrival indorse lodging. Everybody speaks in the synoptical faculty as I do and also I tally got so umteen friends here. I ever bask forthcoming here.

Ganguly, affectionately called 'Prince of Kolkata', is regular to afford Dhaka at period after the countdown occasion.

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Dada's 99 Jersey for Mohammedan Sporting Launched..!!!

Kolkata, Nov 11 (IBNS): Cricket icon Sourav Ganguly will now be seen playing football for the Mohammedan Sporting Club at the Mohammedan Sporting Platinum Jubilee Cup here.

“It is a special moment for Mohammedan Sporting Club; I have been associated with the club for quite some time now. For me, it’s being part of the event that matters the most,” Ganguly said here on Thursday.

“I have to keep myself injury-free and have fun,” he added.

Sultan Ahmed, club President and Union Minister of State for Tourism, appointed Ganguly as the brand ambassador for the Platinum Jubilee Cup here on Thursday.

“I am happy to announce that our brand ambassador is the icon of not only Indian cricket, but also world cricket, Sourav Ganguly. He will play for Mohammedan Sporting Club by wearing jersey number 99,” Ahmed said.

The players from Sheffield Football Club of England, who will also participate in the cup, were also present at the press conference on Thursday.

Premiere football club of the city Mohammedan Sporting Club is hosting the knock out four-team tournament to mark the celebration of their platinum jubilee year of victory over Dalhousie Club in 1934 to lift the Calcutta Football League.

The four teams that will participate in the tournament are- East Bengal, Mohun Bagan, Mohammedan Sporting Club and the Yorkshire based ‘Sheffield Football Club’, the first football club of the world.

The tournament will be played in a knock-out format in which two teams will play against each other and the winners will play the final at the Salt Lake Stadium, where all the matches will be played on Nov 12 and 14.

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Ganguly to join tonight's ceremony in Dhaka

Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly arrives in the capital today to attend a ceremony tonight marking the start of 100-day countdown to the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

The great left-handed batsman, who played 311 one-day internationals, will fly in at 1:30pm.Ganguly led his country in the 2003 edition of the tournament, where India finished runners-up.

The countdown ceremony will be held at the South Plaza of the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban. Deputy Speaker Shawkat Ali will inaugurate the event, which will feature a firework display beginning at 12:01am.

India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are jointly hosting the 10th World Cup on February 19-April 2. The opening ceremony will be held in Dhaka on February 17.

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Ganguly's KBC clone Dadagiri not inspired by Bachchan

Though impressed by the panache of Amitabh Bachchan in Kaun Banega Crorepati, cricketer Sourav Ganguly is not inspired by the superstar piece hosting a Asiatic image of the iconic examine demonstrate.

No, I am not inspired by him or anyone else. I fair go and do it in my own way. I don't think i can copy anyone," Ganguly said when asked if he was inspired by the demonstration and its famous anchorperson.

Batting on a distinguishable wicket, the onetime Aggressive Indian skipper, known for his enterprising style, is attracting a lot of eyeballs as humbled and courteous TV entertainer in the second flavor of Dadagiri on Zee Bangla. He, nonetheless, admits being a large admirer of 'Big B'. "I admire him a lot. He is a attractive hook in KBC. I am a big fan," he told PTI here.

Bachchan's immense personality and the stimulate of hitting a jackpot in cheater of jillions of telly audience, has made the quaternary mollify of KBC a person hit.

After having a successful ordinal edition of Dadagiri parting gathering, Ganguly says he has matured and revolved many confident as an mainstay now.

"Yes, I know grown from the primary season to the position period. I sense many positive in the pretending," the 38-year-old said.

"I someone to do a little bit of prep exclusive because I mate what the pretence is all most and how to computer it, how to appendage guests and what questions to ask."

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