Sourav Ganguly revealed a tale from the 2003 WC |Courtesy - BCCI/Cricket Australia
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- Sourav Ganguly revealed a shocking tale
- VVS Laxman was dropped from the 2003 WC squad
- India made the final of the 2003 World Cup
While the 2003 World Cup was the finest moment of Sourav Ganguly's legendary stint as the captain of the Indian team, the ex-Indian skipper had to take a bold call before the tournament started and leave out VVS Laxman from the 15-man squad.
Laxman, who is widely regarded as one of the finest batters India has produced, was a key component of the Indian batting unit at the time. However, he failed to make the squad for the mega event as the team decided to include an extra all-rounder instead of a specialist batter.
Ganguly revealed that Laxman was not pleased with the decision and made his feelings known to him. Infact, the ex-Indian captain revealed that the star batter did not speak to him for three months as a result of the decision.
"It has happened many times when we rested players. They were unhappy. Laxman being left out of the World Cup...he never spoke to me for three months. Then I made up with him. Anybody would get upset...for a World Cup. Especially a player of Laxman's calibre. Quite natural that he would get upset," said Ganguly in an interaction with Press Trust of India.
Ganguly further stated that the issue was ultimately resolved as Laxman realised it was not anything personal against him and pointed out that the right-handed batter played a key role in helping India win their first-ever ODI series in Pakistan a year later, which included a century in the series decider in Lahore.
"After we finished the World Cup, he was happy that we did well. When we came back, he returned to the ODI system. He played an outstanding series in Pakistan and Australia. We won in Pakistan for the first time ever, and VVS was very instrumental. They knew at the back of their mind that it was never personal," Ganguly added.
Laxman, who played 134 Tests for India, played 86 ODIs for the Men in Blue too, but never got a chance to play the Cricket World Cup. The veteran star, who is currently the head of BCCI's Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, last played an ODI for India in December 2006, months before the 2007 edition.
