Sourav Ganguly, the former captain of India, may not have had a successful tenure during his three years with the Kolkata Knight Riders, yet during the early days of the Indian Premier League, his association with the franchise became iconic. Beyond being one of the prominent figures in Indian cricket, his Bengali heritage solidified his status as a KKR legend. Consequently, when the franchise opted to release Ganguly following the 2010 IPL season, they encountered significant backlash from fans, despite already having two potential replacements in mind, both of whom are now integral to the Indian national team.

In a discussion on the YouTube series 'A Century Of Stories,' Joy Bhattacharjya, the former team director of Kolkata Knight Riders, disclosed that while co-owner Shah Rukh Khan refrained from influencing decisions regarding the team lineup, the choice to part ways with Ganguly was made by three individuals: himself, head coach Dav Whatmore, and then-managing director Jeet Banerjee. Joy noted that the criticism directed at KKR intensified after the franchise chose not to bid for Ganguly.

"Initially, we decided to part ways with Sourav, which was quite remarkable. Shah Rukh distanced himself from the process, stating, 'This is a professional team you are managing.' Thus, it was Dav Whatmore, myself, and Jeet Banerjee who made the call. Interestingly, two Bengalis were involved in that decision-making process. Once we decided not to bid for him, I received 400 messages within five minutes, as someone had shared the news across various groups, labelling it a betrayal of our Bengali icon. I even had to inform my father that he might want to remove our address sign in Salt Lake," he remarked.

Gambhir-Rohit ploy behind Ganguly move

Joy elaborated on the rationale behind KKR's decision to part ways with Ganguly, as the franchise aimed to invest in an Indian player expected to represent the national team in the forthcoming 5-6 years. Consequently, KKR focused their attention on Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma.

"The essence of option study is crucial here. We had a clear objective: to secure an Indian player who would contribute to both the national team and our franchise for the next six or seven years. Thus, we concluded that Gautam Gambhir was the ideal candidate. Our consideration was limited to Gambhir and Rohit Sharma, as we sought two reliable Indian batsmen," he stated.

KKR ultimately did not place a bid for Rohit, who had previously secured an IPL title with the Deccan Chargers before joining the Mumbai Indians, but successfully acquired Gambhir for $2.4 million.

"It is noteworthy that Kochi had set their sights on Gautam Gambhir, valuing him at $8 million. However, we continued to succeed. When we signed Gautam Gambhir, our expenditure was only $2.4 million," he remarked.

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