The Ganguly touch behind the journey of Bengal's latest Ranji Trophy century maker Sudip Kumar Gharami.
For the all-powerful BCCI president Sourav Ganguly to have his name attached to the unknown face of Sudip Kumar Gharami itself makes for a curious tale. The former India skipper has had a massive role to play in Gharami’s ascent into becoming Bengal’s first XI middle-order Ranji Trophy batter.
It was Ganguly who first spotted Bengal’s latest Ranji quarterfinal centurion in the build-up to the 2020 final of India’s premier domestic first-class competition. Seeing the then 21-year-old dominate an U-23 Mumbai attack for Bengal, Ganguly checked with the local coaches if he could be fastracked with the Ranji final coming.
“I had interacted with him [Ganguly] once during the U-23 game against Mumbai at Eden Gardens. I had got out for 66 and he told me, ‘You were batting so well on a wicket where nobody was surviving. Why did you throw away your wicket? You could have scored a 100,” Gharami told SportStar.
As life would have it, Gharami took his first leap towards the senior domestic game in the exact fashion Ganguly did way back in the 1989-90 season – playing the final of the Ranji Trophy. An honour bestowed on rare few and one that Gharami achieved when he was yet to enjoy a proper roof over his head.
When Ganguly spotted him in his U-23 days, Sudip Kumar Gharami lived with his family in a soft-roof house in Naihati supported by bamboos. Protagonist of another story with early struggles, Gharami saw his father – a mason – and housewife mother take pains to make ends meet.
The youngster bought a proper house for his family through all the earnings from winning an U-23 tournament back in 2019. Coincidentally, Gharami’s parents moved into the new house on the very day he turned up for Bengal on Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy final, leaving his family confused whether to celebrate for the house or his son’s on-field achievement.
“We had a kachha house before, made with bamboos. I gave my parents whatever money I earned from the U23 tournaments,” Gharami had said, becoming an inspirational figure for a lot of Bengal’s young talent that goes through the grind for higher recognition day in day out.
Buying a home for his family was a payback for all the sense of gratitude he carries towards his parents, said Gharami, who remains thankful to his father for never discouraging him from playing cricket even as he was dealing with financial constraints.
“I was born in Naihati and I wanted to be a cricketer from a young age. We did not have enough money. My father used to work as a raj mistry in a contract system. But he really wanted to make me a cricketer. He would borrow money from people to give me everything that I needed. The kit and the fee for coaching,” he added.
Former Bengal cricketer Sourasish Lahiri told SportStar that the idea to fast-track promising youngsters from the U-23 age bracket was entirely Ganguly’s. Hoping to infuse fresh blood into the Bengal set-up, Ganguly told Lahiri, state’s U-23 coach, to ensure Sudip Kumar Gharami and the rest of the players in the bracket remain in good space on and off the field.
“It was part of the plan to bring up players from the U-23 team. Dadi [Ganguly] had told me that. It was a crucial age-group. We had to keep them in good space so that they can perform,” Lahiri said, before raving over Gharami.
“I have been working with him for the past two years. He was quite instrumental in the U-23 championship. He is a very good team man, a gritty customer. The approach he showed was brilliant. In my book, at this moment, he is the best cricketer around. Gun fielder. He is an all-round prospect.”
On debut in the Ranji final versus eventual champions Saurashtra, Gharami got picked for the final XI ahead of regulars Shreevats Goswami and Abhishek Raman. Opening the batting, the youngster made only 26 runs but they featured a string of fours, including those against the season’s best seamer Jaydev Unadkat.
The promise exhibited in that little stay at the crease would’ve surely played a part in keeping the Bengal think-tank patient with Gharami even as he struggled during the league stage of the Ranji Trophy in March. The 23-year-old repaid a lot of that trust and confidence in his abilities with a maiden hundred in first-class cricket against Jharkhand in the quarterfinal.
