Kolkata, Sept 15: Having made on-field show of emotions a part and parcel of his aggressive captaincy, India's cricket captain Sourav Ganguly today said he was a straight- forward man to whom passion came naturally. "I don't believe in beating about the bush. I like to say things on the face," the Indian skipper said at a press conference here when asked how he managed to remain so straightforward while facing big challenges.

"Passion comes to me naturally. Cricket is a big game in India. People are crazy about this game. There is nothing like playing cricket for the country. My only driving force is to give the best to the country," Ganguly said. "As a captain also I know that if I want to build a team successfully I have to be straightforward," Ganguly said.

The Indian skipper, despite time and again courting controversy for his blunt observations, has never desisted from speaking his mind on topics related to the game and close to his heart.

A highly passionate man, Ganguly's spontaneous act of taking off his shirt and waving it from the balcony of the lords pavilion after last year's NatWest trophy final win against England generated a debate the world over. The television image of a bare-bodied Ganguly saw the former and current players and mediapersons sharply divided on the issue which raised many an ethical question.

Bureau Report