Sourav Ganguly (left) in a discussion with Sachin Tendulkar at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Tuesday

Calcutta: Former Team India captain Sourav Ganguly’s decision to retire at the end of this series drew mixed reactions from former and present cricketers.

The following are the excerpts (alphabetically):

Mohammed Azharuddin: Pressure has always been on the seniors with media pitting them against youngsters after one bad series (Sri Lanka). Now it will be more since Sourav has made the beginning. It will affect the mindset of other seniors (Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and V.V.S. Laxman). It (the announcement) will also have a negative impact on the home series (against Australia). I am really surprised to hear this. He was the top performer against Pakistan some time ago... I really feel he had a few years of cricket left in him. But perhaps it’s the player who knows himself best. I know Ganguly as one of the most resolute players. His elegance as a batsman is of high class. At one point of time he used to be called the God on off-side.

Sambaran Banerjee: I feel it’s a very good decision. I still remember the day when he was selected for the England tour in 1996… It’s been a long journey… Long 12 years… He has taken a great decision after a successful career in all three forms of the game. I feel after Sunil Gavaskar, his (Sourav’s) will be another graceful retirement.

Bishan Singh Bedi: I would like to celebrate his retirement, rather than mourn it because of his enormous contribution to Indian cricket. A great player, a legend of the game has hung up his boots and we all should celebrate his contribution.

Chandu Borde: Frankly it did not come as a surprise to me. He’s a thinking cricketer. These cricketers know their bodies well. He must have thought deep and consulted people whom he trusts and then decided.

Gopal Bose: I believe it’s a forced retirement imposed on him. Call it compulsory retirement scheme (CRS) rather than VRS… He had no option but quitting. The board actually had him at gun-point. My point is when you are dealing with a senior and mature person like him you should deal sensibly.

Utpal Chatterjee: It’s a perfect decision. I don’t want to get into the controversy of whether it’s a forced decision or his own… But I would rather say it would be an honourable exit at this point of time in his career.

Jagmohan Dalmiya: I have no immediate comment regarding this.

Deep Dasgupta: Personally I feel very down after hearing this. But professionally speaking, I would like to mention that this is a timely decision.

Kapil Dev: We all enjoyed his batting and his passion for the game. I would not mourn his retirement but would recall the joy he gave us all with his game. I hope he plays a gem of a knock against Australia and makes us proud. We are anyway proud of whatever he has done for the country.

Devang Gandhi: It’s basically a very good decision. I believe it’s his personal decision and he must have calculated his options before deciding to hang up his boots.

Jhulan Goswami: I will miss him… I mean to say every cricket lover will miss him. It is a tough decision… I would like to say it’s an emotional decision.

Debu Mitra: I am very much surprised by this decision. I am actually shocked.

Kiran More: It was no doubt a big decision by him. He probably wanted to go out on a high and the series against Australia provides him a great opportunity.

K. Srikkanth: We had a chat with him and he felt it was his time (to go). Every now and then, the axe was on him and he said, ‘Chika, let me play once without any pressure.’ I pray he scores a lot of runs against Australia and India win the series. Because guys like Sourav Ganguly deserve to go out on a winning note.

Raja Venkat: It’s a big loss for the game. A vacuum is created when a cricketer like him retires.