New Delhi, Jul 8: As former India captain Sourav Ganguly turned 53 on Tuesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) extended a warm greeting to its ex-president, highlighting his stats from his stellar career.

After making his international debut in an ODI match against the West Indies in the 1992 Benson and Hedges World Series, Ganguly served the country for 16 glorious years.

The left-hander batter went on to be recognised as one of the greatest batters to have come out of India, particularly in ODIs. He scored 7212 runs in 113 Tests at an average of 42.17 with 16 centuries. In ODI cricket, Ganguly played 311 matches, scoring 11,363 runs at an average of 41.02 with 22 centuries.

"424 intl. matches, 18575 intl. runs, 38 intl. centuries. Here's wishing former #TeamIndia Captain and former BCCI President Sourav Ganguly a very Happy Birthday,' BCCI shared in X.

Replying to the post, Ganguly, wrote: "Thank you BCCI ..the best sporting organisation in the world."

Sourav Ganguly is widely regarded as one of India's most successful and influential cricket captains. He assumed captaincy in 2000 and led the national side in 49 Tests and 146 One-Day Internationals, securing 21 and 76 victories, respectively. Under his captaincy, India began to achieve significant success overseas in Test cricket and mounted an impressive campaign that culminated in reaching the ICC Cricket World Cup final in 2003.

Most importantly, Ganguly under his captaincy, gave opportunity and backed a large pool of talented players, who became big match-winners for India.

Ganguly holds several notable achievements; He became only the eighth Indian player with over 7,000 runs in Tests and also the ninth-highest centurion in the format for India with 16 tons under his belt.

He is one of only eight Indian players to have scored over 7,000 runs in Test cricket and ranks as the ninth-highest century-maker for India in the format, with 16 centuries to his name. In One-Day Internationals, he stands as the eighth-highest run-scorer globally and is among a 14 players to have crossed the 10,000-run milestone.

Renowned for rising to the occasion in major ICC tournaments, Ganguly holds the record for the highest individual score by an Indian in a World Cup match (183 in 1999 against Sri Lanka). He also became the first player to score three centuries in a single World Cup edition (2003) and achieved three overall in the ICC Champions Trophy (2000 and 2002).

Following his retirement from international cricket, Ganguly transitioned seamlessly into cricket administration. After serving as the president of the Cricket Association of Bengal from 2015 to 2019, he was unanimously elected as president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and took very key decisions during his tenure from 2019 to 2022.

(IANS)

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