Can Ganguly break Curse of Pak Tour?

There's always a lot at stake in an India-Pakistan series for players of both teams. But for the Indian captain, it’s personal: every I...

There’s always a lot at stake in an India-Pakistan series for players of both teams. But for the Indian captain, it’s personal: every Indian skipper, barring Sunil Gavaskar, has lost the crown soon after leading a full, completed tour to Pakistan. But Gavaskar and his peers — who gathered here at a corporate event — believe that Saurav Ganguly can buck the trend.

Gavaskar managed to escape the wrath of the selectors/board officials as the 1984 tour could not be completed owing to the assassination of Indira Gandhi. But his predecessors, and one successor, couldn’t: from Lala Amarnath in 1952 through Vinoo Mankad

in 1954-55 and Bishan Singh Bedi in 1978 to Krishnamachari Srikkanth in 1989.

Gavaskar said it straight: ‘‘Captains are always the No. 1 player in any team. Our present skipper is one who has led the team to some fantastic performances in the recent past. There is no reason to think otherwise about the outcome of the forthcoming tour to Pakistan.’’

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‘‘We have a tough skipper at the helm of affairs’’, agreed Ravi Shastri. ‘‘I have no hesitation in saying that we’ll do well. And I dare say no Indian cricketer will be intimidated by the Pakistanis. Our players are all mentally tough although it won’t be just another series.’’

His views were echoed by Srikkanth. ‘‘Leading the country in any game is a moment to cherish for anyone. More so leading a team against Pakistan, because the expectations are very high. Against a tough side the captain has to be tough. We should be happy that in Ganguly our present team has a tough captain to deliver the goods,’’ he said.

	Down and Out

			Captains who failed to survive the Pak tour • 54-55: Vinoo Mankad drew the series 0-0; replaced by Ghulam Ahmed (0-0) • 78-79: Bishan Singh Bedi lost series 0-2; replaced by Venkatraghavan • 82-83: Sunil Gavaskar lost the series 0-3; replaced by Kapil Dev • 89-90: Srikkanth drew the series the 0-0; replaced by Azharuddin — Pervez Qaiser

But the former opener refused to admit that his removal had anything to do with the team’s performance during the 1989 tour of Pakistan. ‘‘We drew the four-match Test series — which, according to me, is as good as winning a series there. With some better luck, we could have returned with a series win,’’ Srikkanth said. Srikkanth’s removal was actually because of a tiff with the BCCI over payment to players on the eve of the team’s departure for Pakistan. He was replaced by Azharuddin for the tours of New Zealand and England that followed. Srikkanth, however, admitted that although playing conditions in both countries were similar, the expectations in the sub-continent make the series more than just a game. ‘‘Since we’ll be touring Pakistan for Tests after almost 15 years, the expectations will be much higher,’’ he said. That is almost an understatement.