Rahul Dravid: Epitome of Selflessness
Fondly known as 'The Wall', Dravid made his international debut for India against Sri Lanka in an ODI game in Singapore in April 1996. He went on to play 509 games for India, including T20Is, ODIs and Tests.
Former India captain and the incumbent head coach of the Indian senior men's cricket team, Rahul Dravid is celebrating his 51st birthday on Thursday, January 11. A batter of unrivalled class and a leader of men, Dravid has carved a niche for himself as one of the greatest servants of Indian cricket and doesn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
On his birthday, let's try to comprehend why he is regarded as a nonpareil personality.
Unparalleled team player
Back in 2002, when India didn't have a specialist wicketkeeper who could bat responsibly and win games with the willow in hand, Dravid was tasked to don the wicketkeeping gloves - something he had not done previously at the international level.
But rather than resisting the responsibility or throwing tantrums, the boy from Bangalore embraced it with open arms and took the bull by the horns.
A similar scenario came to the fore in 2007 during India's tour of Australia when the team management desperately wanted to cash in the talent of then 26-year-old Yuvraj Singh's white-ball prowess into Test cricket, one last time.
Having made his Test debut in Mohali against New Zealand in October 2003, Yuvraj had not managed to make the most out of the opportunities in red-ball cricket despite being presented with several gigs.
However, he had shown stupendous form in the ODI circuit and hence the Anil Kumble-led team management decided to give him another run in whites while chasing a maiden Test series win in Australia.
The decision to include Yuvraj meant a reshuffle in the batting order and it was Dravid again who left the No. 3 spot and went to open alongside Wasim Jaffer.
While the decision didn't bear fruit for the side as Yuvraj bagged scores of 0,5, 12 and 0 in the two Tests, Dravid still managed to score a dogged half-century (53 off 160 balls) against the searing pace of Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson while batting out of position.
One who made way for young Turks
India turned out to be far from a combative side in Tests when Dravid's international career moved into its twilight stage. Having won the ODI World Cup in 2011, the Test team under the leadership of MS Dhoni was expected to showcase impressive performances, rather it got steamrolled.
India got whitewashed 4-0 in England and Australia in the Pataudi Trophy and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy respectively and had nowhere to hide. While Dravid cut a sorry figure during the Australia tour, aggregating 194 runs in eight innings at an underwhelming average of 24.25, he was the only India batter who made the English attack toil when India got humbled in English conditions four months ago in July-August 2011.
The Indore-born scored 461 runs across eight innings at an average of 76.83 while the other India batters threw in the towel against a rampaging English attack led by James Anderson and Stuart Broad. He was the third-leading run-accumulator in the series behind Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell and was miles ahead of Sachin Tendulkar (second-leading Indian run-getter) who amassed 273 while averaging 34.12.
Therefore, as they say, one doesn't become bad overnight, a flop trip to Australia hadn't damaged The Wall's credentials enough for him to worry about his position in the side.
However, sensitive to the vibration made by the spectacular performances of emerging talents like Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, Dravid, vacated his spot in the side and drew curtains on his illustrious playing career.
Bowing out quietly
Cricketers with legendary status are treated with the utmost respect when they announce their farewell game in advance. Still, Dravid, a legend in every right, never longed for any fanfare and stepped away from the stage without any razzmatazz.
Worthy of a lap and a guard of honour, Dravid, instead, called for a press conference, that lasted less than an hour, in a function room at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore and walked away from the limelight as silently as he could have.
Taking ownership of collective failure
India's ODI World Cup 2007 debacle still stings as if it unfolded yesterday. Following listless performances against Bangladesh and the eventual runners-up Sri Lanka, the Men in Blue suffered an unceremonious exit from the group stage as infuriated fans in India ran riot.
Being touted as one of the semi-finalists, India's abysmal display raised a big question mark on their preparations and the planning that went into playing in the marquee tournament. Even in the darkest hour, Dravid showed courage and took ownership of the failure solely. He contacted the then BCCI President Sharad Pawar and stepped down from his role despite having the option to continue.
15 years fast forward, Dravid, once again, took centre stage when the kitchen became too hot after India's 10-wicket loss at the hands of England in the T20 World Cup 2022 semifinal. Wary of the fact that his crestfallen players were not in a position to face the incisive question of the journalists, Dravid made his way into the post-match presser with civility and defended the Men in Blue, the way he would do in his playing career - like an infrangible wall.