Dodda Ganesh

Doddanarasiah Ganesh  pronunciation  (born 30 June 1973, Bangalore, Karnataka) is a former Indian cricketer who played in 4 Tests and one ODI in 1997. He was a right-arm seam bowler and useful lower-order batsman.

Ganesh failed to make an impression in his limited Test opportunities, picking up just five wickets at an average of 57.40. In first-class cricket, he took 365 wickets from 104 matches, including 299 at 27.09 for his team Karnataka.

Early career

Dodda Ganesh started out as a wicketkeeper and an opening batsmen. His idols while growing up were Sadanand Viswanath, the Indian wicketkeeper and Ravi Shastri. Gundappa Viswanath spotted his bowling talent and enrolled him at Tarapore club. Frustrated with the lack of opportunities, he shifted to AV Jayaprakash's training camp where he prospered as a bowler and forced an entry into the Karnataka side.

Domestic career

The 1990s was the golden era for Karnataka cricket. Due to the presence of Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, Anil Kumble and Sunil Joshi, Ganesh had limited opportunities to show his talent. Despite making his debut in the 1994-95 season, Ganesh could not get a permanent slot in the Karnataka team. Coming from a humble background, he was helped by kind team-mates and well-wishers. Jayaprakash waived the tuition fees and gave him a bat, Srinath would get him a pair of shoes from abroad, Kumble would give him clothes and, while at the MRF Pace Academy, Prasad would translate in Kannada for him.