Sourav Ganguly gets into brawl with passenger over train berth

What’s the story?

Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly has been having a tough few days recently beginning with the confusion regarding the Indian cricket team’s coaching personnel. It seems the troubled times are following the 45-year-old as it was reported that he was engaged in a massive brawl with a co-passenger over a rail berth.

By his own admission, Ganguly was travelling by train for the first time since 2001, but the journey turned out to be an unpleasant one as he was forced to change his seat after he got into an argument with a passenger who was allegedly sitting in his berth.

With the latter refusing to budge and crowd gathering in huge numbers following the argument, RPF Personnel were forced to intervene and Ganguly was later offered a berth in the AC 2-tier coach.

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The incident took place when Ganguly was travelling to Balurghat with CAB secretary Abhishek Dalmiya on the Padatik Express for the unveiling of his eight-feet tall bronze statue at Bikash Maidan.

Despite the acrimonious tiff, Ganguly was seen in good spirits at the stadium where thousands greeted the Indian batting legend with a huge roar.

The heart of the matter

For someone who made his name as an aggressive skipper who redefined the way India approached the game, Ganguly has never shied away from making a point, both on and off the field.

While opposition skippers and sometimes even fellow teammates have often felt the brunt of his bold and at times brash nature, it was the turn of the train passenger to feel the heat this time around.

To be fair to Ganguly, it is reported that it was the passenger who was at fault as he occupied the berth allotted to the former cricketer, thus giving rise to a big argument.

The RPF personnel quickly intervened though and found a solution by shifting the former India skipper to the AC 2-tier coach before the situation went out of hand.

Ganguly continued his journey with no further interruptions before getting down in Malda. From there he proceeded by road to Balurghat to unveil a statue designed by Siliguri-based sculptor Sushanta Pal.

The statue was based on the famous image of Ganguly raising his bat to acknowledge his first Test century against Australia in the Brisbane Test in 2003 – on the way to a masterful knock of 144 that set the tone for an exciting series which ended 1-1.

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Author’s take

Ganguly divides opinion with his nature, which is perceived as aggressive by some. There are others who feel that the former Indian skipper is quite hot-headed.

He remains a hugely popular figure though even years after hanging up his pads and has been actively involved in cricket administration as President of Cricket Association of Bengal and one of the three members of the Cricket Advisory Committee along with Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman.

While he was in the news recently for the confusion surrounding the Indian team’s coaching staff, this incident ensured that he continues to hog the headlines otherwise as well.