Published: Dec 04, 2015, 01:11 PM (IST)
Edited: Dec 04, 2015, 01:39 PM (IST)
Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly on Thursday revealed that once he had to fight with the Indian selectors till 2’o clock in the night to ensure Anil Kumble was in the team for the tour of Australia 2003-04. India’s one of the most iconic captains brought the matter to light adding that the Indian selectors wanted the left-arm spinner Murali Kartik for the tour of Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2003-04. The series was closely fought between the two sides, with India taking a crucial 1-0 lead in the four-Test affair at the Adelaide Oval. Australia managed to draw the series 1-1, which was the last for their captain Steve Waugh. ALSO READ: When Virender Sehwag lit up Boxing Day at the MCG with a breathtaking 195
Kumble was one of the key players for India as he ended the series with 24 wickets, which was the highest for both the sides. Kumble grabbed six wickets in the Adelaide Test, which India won by 4 wickets. But Australia bounced back in the third Test to slam India by 9 wickets, and level the affairs. ALSO READ — India tour of Australia 2003-04: The day Rahul Dravid conquered Adelaide
Talking about Kumble’s innings, Ganguly said, “The selectors were picking Kartik saying ‘Kumble doesn’t pick wickets outside India’. But I was hell bent and said I won’t go without Kumble as the meeting went on till 2’o clock in the night.”
“Selectors told me if Kumble doesn’t take wickets and team doesn’t do well, ‘we’ll have a new captain’. We had the best ever Australian trip in the history. Kumble finished that season as the highest wicket taker on the ICC calendar,” Ganguly said during his address on ‘Transforming setbacks into comebacks’ during INFOCOM 2015, which is the 14th edition of the annual Information and Communication Technology conference, reported India Today.
Ganguly added, “He [Kumble] was a champion and was going through a phase when he was not taking wickets. That was a part of setbacks. That time you don’t ask him to leave but give him those extra yards. That’s how you create trust.”
