Sourav Ganguly is one of the most prominent names in Indian cricket. There were lot of guys who were excellent as players, there were few guys who were excellent as captain. And then there was Sourav Ganguly, who was both: a terrific player and an even better captain. He laid the foundation of modern day Indian team, which rules the hearts of billion fans. And if someone has to be applauded for his contribution in transforming Indian team to a win-hungry Indian team, it is Sourav Ganguly.

Kapil Dev, Sourav Ganguly , MS Dhoni are the most successful captains for India. Kapil Dev did the unthinkable by winning 1983 world cup , inspiring young kids to take up the sport. MS Dhoni took the team to newer and newer heights, by making the team habit of winning ICC tournaments. And in between Kapil and Dhoni, there were many who tried their luck as captain, but it was India's luck that Sourav Ganguly was the one out of those.

Prince of Kolkata was born to rule the Indian cricket. He had really shown early glimpses of it. He was instantly in the headlines as he made a magnificent century on his test debut at Lord's. It was the first instance of him helping India when the team was in trouble, something which he did for most of his career. A magnificent 131 from him batting along with another debutant Rahul Dravid, denied England a victory. And even though India didn't win the match, they did found two match winners - Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid.

It was a much important move for Indians ,who were rather heavily dependant on Sachin Tendulkar in the first half of 1990's. The god of cricket, combined with the god of off side then became a sight to watch for world cricket. India did find talents like Sourav, Rahul, Laxman and others, and most importantly they found the skipper in the form of Ganguly who would inculcate the winning instinct in them.

Not many know that, 1992 was when Dada made his debut, but was dropped from the side due to his arrogance. It's noteworthy that his same arrogance helped India massively when he was the skipper. His arrogance was one of the major reasons behind his success as a captain. He didn't care to respect the opposition, and paid no heed to the dominating sides like Australia England. His attitude of not giving a damn to these brought the best of him and his team.

Which is exactly why, he didn't let the match fixing scandal in Indian cricket affect his personal performances. He was a master of his own. He didn't care to follow the British traditions of greeting fans on his County debut for Lancashire. And even after the British media criticising him immensely, he was hardly bothered. Afterall, he was the Prince of Kolkata. The same attitude of not thinking about the critics helped him take his team forward in most difficult circumstances.

He was a master of mind games. Respect to the opposition was not his style of greeting. He made them wait, he infuriated them eventually to unsettle them. Which is why, he made Australian captain Steve Waugh wait for 4 consecutive times for the toss during the 2001 Australia's tour of India. The frustration of Waugh was visible, and he openly mentioned about it. In the fifth test , he humiliated cricket traditions by going to the toss with a practice kit, rising temper of Waugh. In the test series, his team won the infamous Eden Gardens test match, where India became the 3rd team to win the match after follow-on enforced on them. Ganguly 's mind games against the Australian helped Indian team to win the historic test series by 2-1.

Indians were known for their polite behaviour on the field. And at times the politeness led to lethargy and lack of aggression. But Ganguly changed it all. His aggression was always there as a player. A result of which, till today he has the highest number of centuries for India in ICC knockouts. Infact his highest score of 183 runs in ODIs came in one of the world cup matches itself. He showed the rest of the team on how to perform in crucial matches. The most loved Indian victory over England at Lord's in 2002 was an output of the same. He led the team which chased a mammoth total of 326 runs, and he then removed his shirt to avenge the Flintoff shirt celebration in Wankhede.

This victory, and the famous Eden Gardens victory gave a new dimension to Indian cricket. Since the, the Indian team looked for victories in the most difficult situations as well. Ganguly didn't just bring new dimension to the side, he also made youngsters turn into match winners for India. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Zaheer Khan, Parthiv Patel were all groomed by Dada. Players performed the best when he was the captain, because he assured them of their place in the playing eleven. He trusted Dhoni even after 4 failed outings, post which he went on to score 148 against Pakistan, and the rest is history.

He cared for his team and his players. He always stood up to them. He never tolerated anyone criticizing the players for no good reason. He bashed many big mouth reporters for criticizing the players without themselves having played the game at the level. He never spoke a word wrong about his team, even when they performed badly. Which is why, he was stressed after Yuvraj Singh pranked him by publishing fake newspaper article showing Ganguly criticized him, as he never did it. He cared for the players like his own family members. And therefore he built a team. A team , which will go on to rule the world.

He provided the perfect launching platform for the team to go up. The resultant of which was MS Dhoni leading the well built team to further accolades, becoming the most successful captain of India. Ganguly was one of the rare guys, who kept performing well even till the time he retired. 2007 was a year close to his international retirement, and yet he had more than 1000 runs in ODIs as well as tests. He continued to serve Indian team after he was replaced by a new captain. He continued to win matches for India after he was termed as "finished" by media and critics. And hence, he was loved by his countrymen.

He left a legacy. A legacy which was hard to replicate. A legacy which inspired many many cricketers to perform better no matter who the opposition is. A legacy which showed the world that India is coming to win. He inculcated the fighting spirit deep in the team to the extent, where for the first time Indian team looked threatening for the opposite teams. And after all what he did for Indian team, he retired silently without the board giving him a well deserved farewell. Yet he servet cricket in every possible way. One of the greatest batters, god of offside, the best man for India in ICC knockouts, the fearless captain who took built the Indian team - Sourav Ganguly turns 51 years old today. And we pray to God that he reaches his century like he has done most of the times he crossed his 50. Happy Birthday Dada.

A poetic tribute to Dada :-