Sourav Ganguly was undoubtedly one of the best captains Indian cricket saw in history. His inspirational leadership took Indian cricket to great heights. The left-hander was in charge from 2000 to 2005 as full-time skipper. He did lead the team as a stand-in for Sachin Tendulkar in 1999.


Known to be a fierce leader, for Ganguly, losing was not an option. He turned a talented bunch of players into a fighting unit and taught a nation that no opposition was invincible.

As he turns 44, here are seven times his captaincy was rewarded on the international stage

 1. Winning ODI series vs South Africa in 2000 Year.
Team India won the ODI series 3-2 vs South Africa

 2. India Beating Australia 2-1 in Test series at home in 2001 Year.
Team India won the test series 2-1 vs Australia

 3. Celebrating by waving his jersey after winning Natwest Trophy in 2002 Year.
India recorded win over England chasing down 326

 4. India being joint winners of the ICC Champions Trophy in 2002 Year.
ICC Champions Trophy in 2002 Year

 5. Leading India to the finals of ICC World Cup final in 2003 Year.
ICC World Cup 2003 Team India won 9 out of 11 games in the tournament Ganguly hit 3 centuries

 6. Drawing Test series 1-1 in Australia in 2003-2004 years.
Drawing Test series 1-1 in Australia in 2003-04

 7. Captaining team to first Test series win in Pakistan in 2004 Year.
Team India won the test series 2-1 vs Pakistan in 2004
He missed the first 2 Tests due to injury and returned at the helm for the decider. India won by an innings to clinch the series 2-1, their first on Pakistan soil. Ganguly's contribution was 77 as India took a first innings lead of 376.