The 100th Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, beginning on Wednesday, will also mark the remarkable Sourav Ganguly's 100th Test appearance. A little over 13 months back, it was almost unthinkable that the 35-year-old Kolkatan would get to that mark. After all, he was out on the sidelines in both forms of the game.
Ganguly's career has always been about defying the odds, and confounding people. He staged a dramatic comeback to the Test side in South Africa last December, and has since re-established himself as a key member of both the Test and limited-overs teams.
In a free-wheeling chat with Deccan Herald, Ganguly said he had never tried to prove anything to anyone. "I have never tried to prove people wrong," he said. "I have just tried to prove to myself that every time I walked out to play for India, as player or captain, I could finish the day thinking I still belong at this level. When I started in '96 and got my first Test hundred, the first thing that came to my mind was 'I feel I am good enough at this level'. I then played through a span, became captain, we started winning. I started feeling that I could deliver as a captain for the team to win. When I got left out and came back, I wanted to prove just to myself that at this age, even after being left out, when you have come back, you are still mentally, physically and technically strong to survive the presure at this level. I have never tried to prove people wrong, that has never been my goal. My only goal has been to prove to myself that I am good enough to handle it -- the pressure at this level, which is always going to be there."
Reflecting on his long journey, the graceful left-hander went on, "It has been a good 11-12 years. I have seen good things, I have seen tough times. The important thing is that I have seen the best part of Indian cricket in terms of successes, which I think is the highpoint of my career. A lot of things have changed. The approach to cricket between 1996 and now, the approach to training and fitness -- it has gone a big circle, and that's one of the reasons why our performances overseas have also become better."
Ganguly insisted, though, that he would not approach Test number 100 any differently. "It's satisfying that I am playing my 100th Test," he observed. "But leading up to the game, my preparations before playing a Test will remain the same. I will be happy on Wednesday to have reached this landmark, I just need to try to do well."