Sourav Ganguly birthday special: 10 lesser-known facts about 'Prince of Kolkata' 

One of India's most dynamic skippers, Sourav Ganguly, celebrated his 51st birthday on Saturday (July 8).

Ganguly is widely regarded as a revolutionary of Indian cricket for his role in uplifting Indian cricket and bringing a combative approach to the team.

Although Ganguly's legacy is well known, many are unaware of a few rare and unknown facts about him.

Here's the complete list:

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Ganguly was nicknamed 'Maharaj' by his parents, which later became associated with his name when Geoffrey Boycott hailed him as the 'Prince of Calcutta'.

Ganguly was initially interested in football but was insisted by his brother Snehashish to join a cricket academy.

Surprisingly, Dada later replaced his elder brother Snehashish in the Bengal Ranji Team.

Ganguly's daily routine suggests that he is right-handed but bats left-handed.

Ganguly was the first player to register three centuries in Champions Trophy history.

Whenever Ganguly scored a Test ton, India never lost the match. He has recorded 16 centuries in Test cricket, and none of them came in a losing cause.

Ganguly's Test average never fell below 40 at any point in his career.

Sourav is a deeply religious person and observes a fast every Tuesday.

There is a 1.5 km road named after Ganguly at Rajarhat in the North 24 Parganas district in West Bengal.

Sourav owns a three-storey restaurant, 'Souravs: The Food Pavilion' in Kolkata. The restaurant was inaugurated by his close friend Sachin Tendulkar.