For Pune skipper Ganguly, cracking the shortest format of the sport hasn't been easy since the inception of the IPL in 2008. MiD DAY tells you why...
The time has come to bid adieu to Sourav Ganguly from the Indian Premier League. Following Rajasthan Royals’ crushing seven-wicket victory on Tuesday, Pune became the second team after Deccan Chargers to crash out of IPL-V, having lost nine out of 13 matches.
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The early exit comes as a major disappointment for owners, Sahara India, who had put their faith behind India’s most successful skipper to be an able replacement for cancer-stricken Yuvraj Singh. Declared the team’s mentor, he was also entrusted with the responsibility of acting as a stand-in coach.
Ganguly’s IPL flop show
>> IPL-I (Kolkata)
Matches: 13, Runs: 349, HS: 91, Avg: 29.08, SR: 113.68
>>u00a0u00a0IPL-II (Kolkata)
Matches: 13, Runs: 189, HS: 46, Avg: 17.18, SR: 91.30
>>u00a0u00a0IPL-III (Kolkata)
Matches: 14, Runs: 493, HS: 88, Avg: 37.92, SR: 117.66
>>u00a0u00a0IPL-IV (Pune)
Matches: 4, Runs: 50, HS: 32, Avg: 25, SR: 84.74
>>u00a0u00a0IPL-V (Pune)
Matches: 13, Runs: 261, HS: 45, Avg: 20.07, SR: 100.77
In IPL-V, Ganguly’s strike rate of 100.77 is the worst among all his teammates who have aggregated at least 100 runs
His lacklustre showing as an ‘icon’ player and captain of Kolkata in the first three editions left him without a buyer in the last players’ auction
Among all batsmen in IPL-V who have scored a minimum of 100 runs, only KKR’s Jacques Kallis (SR: 100) is striking it slower than Ganguly
Came to Pune as a replacement player for Yuvraj Singh under a Rs 2 crore-contract. At Rs 82,000 a run, he has proven to be a costly mistake for Sahara
Pune/KKR have often suffered due to Ganguly’s inability to take quick singles and convert ones to twos. In other words, he isn’t the most agile cricketer aroundu00a0