On the 25th anniversary of India’s greatest-ever Test victory against Australia at the Eden Gardens in 2001, Revsportz took us on a majestic revival of the joyous memory. Indian cricket’s modern heights are a reflection of the years of determination and grit of their cricketers.
Today, India are the World Champions in ICC tournaments, but at one time this team was not even considered a major opponent among the game’s giants. However, over the years, Indian players have played their hearts out, demonstrating their authority in the sport.
25 years back, India did win one of their most historic Test matches against one of the World’s best Test teams during those times. They defeated the mighty Aussies at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, and some of the Indian players played their most memorable Test innings in that game.
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“Kya dressing-room tha, kya zamana tha,” Boria Majumdar made Harbhajan Singh reminisce about the golden era
Revsports had organized Trailblazers 4.0 at ITC Sonar with former Indian cricketers Venkatesh Prasad, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh, players who were part of a different generation of cricket for India. They were part of the time phase when India were rebuilding their squad.
At the start of the event, as the guests passed over a standing ovation to the cricketers, Boria Majumdar, the show host and the Editor-in-Chief of RevSportz, whispered this in Harbhajan Singh’s ears: “Kya dressing-room tha, kya zamana tha (what a dressing room it was, what a time it was).”
The Turbunator replied instantly, saying that “I thought about saying this during the session.” Boria Majumdar captivated the audience once again with his subtle yet charming oration, as he showed them revisiting those moments from 2001, while praising the then Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly.
Former Indian stars revisited the 2001 Eden Gardens glory down memory lane
As the session slowly turned into a stunning adda between the fans and the players, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and Venkatesh Prasad contributed immensely to it. Sourav Ganguly, the former Indian skipper, joined online during that match.
Majumdar recalled one of VVS Laxman’s most admired Test innings in that match at the Eden Gardens and against an opposition that the world feared, but VVS considered the best to bat against. Rahul Dravid also supported the Indian no. 3. During the middle phase, the two contributed to a mammoth partnership in the game.
Not only the batters but also the bowlers did a remarkable job. Not only did they pull out anything special with the ball, but they also saved Sourav Ganguly from being stripped of captaincy, which helped Team India, as he was the core character behind the rebuilding of India’s core that won them matches later in the future.
After having lost the opening Test at Wankhede against Australia, a defeat in this match would surely imply the end of Ganguly’s captaincy streak, and India would lose one of their most futuristic figures in international cricket.
Who is India’s greatest ever Captain?
India’s greatest ever captain, this has been the never-ending debate, and the stats make it further difficult for the Indian fans to pick one out of the number of memorable skippers who have served Indian cricket.
However, Boria Majumdar points out that though the numbers favour MS Dhoni in white-ball cricket, it was Sourav Ganguly who was clearly responsible for reshaping India’s future in the sport as he showed faith in several youngsters like Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Ashish Nehra, Virender Sehwag and later MS Dhoni himself.
Majumdar also points out that the best captain is loved by his dressing-room mates and the way they rate him. As a sample of this, he quoted the former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh, who claimed, “He (Ganguly) is the best captain I played under.”
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