When Sourav Ganguly played gully cricket against Prince of Wales

Ever imagined Sourav Ganguly, once hailed as the ‘Prince of Calcutta’ by Sir Geoffrey Boycott, bowling right-arm over the wicket to William, the Prince of Wales, with iconic Buckingham Palace in the backdrop? The unusual sight became a reality on Tuesday at ‘Cricket on The Mall’, a promotional event organised to build excitement for the Earthshot Prize ceremony, which will be held in Mumbai later.

Ganguly, the former India captain who wears many hats, was invited to the event alongside several cricketing stars, including legendary West Indies batter Brian Lara, James Anderson, England’s highest wicket-taker in Test cricket, current England Test captain Joe Root, and Ajinkya Rahane. During an interaction with fans, Prince William was quoted as saying, “Sourav Ganguly is one of the finest cricketers.”

A former BCCI president and current Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president, Ganguly was recently appointed head coach of Delhi Capitals for IPL 2027. Yuvraj Singh, who played under his captaincy and has mentored young talents such as Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma, has been named the team's assistant and batting coach.

Ganguly’s association with the IPL franchise began in 2019, when he joined as an advisor. The 54-year-old has since held several leadership roles within the Delhi Capitals setup, including Director of Cricket for both the men’s and women’s teams. He also served as head coach of the franchise’s SA20 team, Pretoria Capitals, last year.

‘’I am looking forward to taking on the role of head coach in the IPL. Delhi Capitals is a franchise very close to my heart, and one with which I have shared a strong relationship over the years,’’ Ganguly said in a statement shared by the franchise. ‘’I am looking forward to working with the squad in the new season and building a strong and fearless team,’’ he added.

Capitals is jointly owned by GMR Group and JSW Group and in a somewhat unique management cycle, the two groups take turns managing the franchise in a biennial cycle. GMR’s tenure ended in 2026 and the Capitals have failed to make the play-offs since 2020, when they had finished runners-up in their best finish.

Former skipper Rishabh Pant is also back with the franchise after Capitals and Lucknow Super Giants agreed to a high-profile player trade, which saw a swap with wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav. Axar Patel had captained the squad for past two seasons.