'What a win' – Sourav Ganguly reminisces 2001 Kolkata Test win against Australia

Back in March 2001, India, under the leadership of current BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, won one of the most remarkable Test matches at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Back then Australia, led by the enigmatic Steve Waugh, was near invincible and were equally lethal in home and overseas conditions. The Aussies started the series in an emphatic fashion with a victory.

In the second Test, the visitors elected to bat first and racked up 445 on the board. Harbhajan Singh picked a hat-trick, but couldn’t stop Waugh’s men from posting the colossal score. In their first innings, India were bowled out for a mere 171. Most importantly, they conceded Australia a lead of 274 runs. It didn’t spring a surprise that the Aussies went on to enforce the follow on.

Laxman and Dravid rescue India

At a time when the game seemed to have gone beyond India’s radar, VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid had something incredible in store. The duo not only helped India stage a comeback, but also set Australia a target of 384. Laxman and Dravid put on a partnership of 376 runs for the fifth wicket. In the end, the home team declared their innings on 657 for the loss of seven wickets.

Even as Laxman managed to amass 281 runs, the then highest Indian individual score, Dravid ended on 180 runs. In their run-chase, Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer put on 74 runs for the opening wicket to keep India guessing. However, the middle-order was blown away by the spinners. Harbhajan ran through their batting lineup with a stupendous six-wicket haul.

Sachin Tendulkar also chipped in with three wickets. The pacers, Zaheer Khan and Venkatesh Prasad, were entrusted for only 11 out of the 68.3 overs bowled. In the end, India emerged victorious by 171 to draw level in the three-match series. In the meantime, Ganguly found a video of the win and he couldn’t help going down the memory lane.

On Wednesday, April 15, Ganguly shared the video of the historic victory on Twitter. In the clip, the Indian cricketers were seen, celebrating following the triumph. Dada captioned the video and wrote, “What a win’.

Here is Sourav Ganguly’s post

What a win .. https://t.co/4nMm5e2eb7

— Sourav Ganguly (@SGanguly99) April 15, 2020