The era of Rahul Dravid began in England alongside his fellow teammate and former captain, Sourav Ganguly. Though he fell short of a well deserved century on debut, his class and impregnable technique was there for all to see. Soon the English media was abuzz with praise for the man known for his mental toughness, temperament and immaculate batting technique. It became apparent that Rahul Dravid belonged to the stage of world cricket.
After his near perfect debut, Rahul Dravid continued to pile on runs through tiring the opposition bowlers and playing the waiting game to perfection. When you saw Rahul Dravid in his heydays, he was a picture of elegance that was earlier said to be the signature style of great Gundappa Vishwanath and former Australian opener, Mark Waugh. But Rahul Dravid was far ahead when it came to grinding down the opposition with his water tight technique.
In late 1990's, Rahul Dravid had firmly established himself as one of the greatest test batsmen of all time. His voracious appetite for runs was well known. When the times were rough and opposition bowlers were on top, Rahul Dravid emerged as India's go to man or the man everyone called 'The wall'. What makes Rahul Dravid a true batting legend is his simple, grounded thinking which was reflected in his batting. Another admirable quality about Rahul Dravid was the fact that he was a team man to the core.
As I mull about Rahul Dravid's memorable knocks, I can't help but travel back 11 years to one of the greatest venues, Kolkata's Eden Garden, in 2001 where India were playing World Champions, Australia, led by one of the game's greatest skippers, Steven Waugh. India were already trailing in the series and the test match was in a precarious situation as India was given a follow on. What unfolded next is the best ever turnarounds in cricketing history. Rahul Dravid walked in at No. 5 as VVS Laxman was promoted to coveted No. 3 position ahead of Rahul Dravid.
After facing the initial on slaught by Aussie fast bowlers, the terrific duo of Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman settled down and began to score freely. As the innings progressed, everyone knew something special is in the offing. VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid indeed dished out the virtuoso performances with VVS Laxman scored the perfect 281 and Rahul Dravid made a wonderful crafted 180. And that resulted in arguably the greatest test match victory for Indian cricket team. While everyone hailed VVS Laxman, but for me it was Rahul Dravid who played the rescuer's role marvelously yet again. If it wasn't for Rahul Dravid's marathon innings, India would have lost badly. That innings was a perfect blend of caution and aggression. Yet again Rahul Dravid was the unsung hero of Indian cricket.
A lesson which you and I must learn from Rahul Dravid is to never give up and challenge the impossible by staying focused on your goals. He was truly a captain's delight and opposition teams respected this artist. In an era of swash buckling batsmen, Rahul Dravid stood tall with his classical style which oozed elegance. He was a joy to watch when in full flow and even better when going was rougher for the team. Another spectacular inning came in the famous Adelaide Test Match against rampaging Australians which also happened to be Steve Waugh's farewell test match. Yet again Rahul Dravid rose to the challenge and made a flawless 233 in the first innings and 72 not out in the second innings to register India's first ever win in Adelaide.
Rahul Dravid was one of the greatest test batsmen to have played this glorious game. The strong character of Rahul Dravid came to the fore when he was labelled as the legendary test batsman and an average One Day International player. Media ridiculed him for being 'slow' and some experts called for his ommision from the Indian ODI team. Rahul Dravid took it as a challenge and he went back to the nets and finetuned his game. In 1999 World Cup, Rahul Dravid ended up as the highest run getter in the tournament. That year was the arrival of Rahul Dravid, the legendary one day batsman.
Having represented India with pride and distinction for 16 years, Rahul Dravid silenced his critics with his bat by scoring over 11,000 runs in Test Cricket and over 10,000 runs in ODI cricket. It bears a testimony to his sheer greatness and his stature as one of the greatest batsmen to have played the gentleman's game. Even his illustrious compatriots, Sachin R. Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble, held him in high esteem. Each one of them praised Rahul Dravid for being a champion batsman and a true team man.
Yesterday, Rahul Dravid walked into the sunset of his glittering career in his hometown of Bangalore. Now that's what legends are made up of. Rahul Dravid has etched his name on the minds of every cricket fan as an inimitable legend known for values such as passion, dedication, temperament and simplicity which he upheld with dignity. Hats off to you Rahul, your name will shine for ever!
