Sourav Ganguly reveals why VVS Laxman had stopped talking to him for three months: 'Anybody would get upset'

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Former India captain Ganguly, however, added that the decision that angered batting icon Laxman wasn't personal, and the two eventually patched up with passage of time. read more
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly revealed VVS Laxman did not speak to him for months after the latter was excluded from India's squad for the 2003 ICC World Cup in South Africa. Batting icon Laxman was a strong favourite to be included in India's squad for the tournament until Ganguly decided otherwise and fought for spin-bowling all-rounder Dinesh Mongia's inclusion in the South Africa-bound squad.
Laxman is among a handful of notable Indian cricketers who never got to play in a World Cup. The closest he had come to playing in ICC's quadrennial showpiece event was in 2003, around which time he was a first-choice player in Tests as well as ODIs.
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Ganguly opens up on decision to pick Mongia over Laxman for World Cup
And Ganguly revealed Laxman did not speak to him for three months after being informed that he would not be traveling with the rest of the squad to the World Cup.
'It has happened many times when we rested players. They were unhappy. Laxman being left out of the World Cup…he never spoke to me for three months. Then I made up with him. Anybody would get upset…for a World Cup. Especially a player of Laxman's calibre. Quite natural that he would get upset,' Ganguly told PTI.
Former India wicketkeeper-batter Kiran More, who was the chief selector at the time, had also revealed in a chat with ex-Pakistan captain Rashid Latif that the selection committee was in favour of including Laxman over Mongia, but captain Ganguly and head coach John Wright had other plans for the mega tournament.
Ganguly, however, added that the decision to drop Laxman wasn't personal and spoke highly of the stylish Hyderabadi batter, who scored more than 10,000 international runs including 8,781 in Tests, making a strong comeback into the ODI side later that year.
'After we finished the World Cup, he was happy that we did well. When we came back, he returned to the ODI system. He played an outstanding series in Pakistan and Australia. We won in Pakistan for the first time ever, and VVS was very instrumental. They knew at the back of their mind that it was never personal,' 'Dada' added.
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Ganguly had led India into the final of the 2003 World Cup despite a poor start, on the back of eight consecutive wins. The Men in Blue, however, fell short in the final hurdle, suffering a 125-run defeat at the hands of Ricky Ponting's Australians who won the tournament for the second consecutive time by winning all of their matches.