Oct 13, 2003 01:08 PM
4108 Views
(Updated Oct 13, 2003 01:08 PM)
“Rahul Dravid does not deserve a place in the Indian cricket team, test matches or one-day matches.”
These were the feelings I had and these are the very words I had spoken 2 years ago. But today I gladly eat those words and accept all the bad words and curses that are directed towards me for the above statement.
This is my 50th review on Mouthshut.com and I thought that this review had to be special. And Rahul Dravid is a very special player today and this 50th review is dedicated to him.
The very fact that I am glad in eating back the words is only due to the sheer performance and consistency of Rahul Dravid over the past 24 months.
From the moment Rahul Dravid made his debut, he has been overshadowed by other performances. He made 95 on his test debut only to be overshadowed by Ganguly who made a century in that very match (that was Ganguly’s debut as well). In the 1999 world cup, again Ganguly made 183 and Dravid who made 145 was left in the shadows. At Kolkatta, when Laxman played the innings of his life, no one even bothered to talk about Dravid’s contribution.
As the press put it “Always the Bridesmaid, Never the Bride”
And to top it, the public and the critics felt that Rahul was too slow in the one day matches and in the tests though he stood at the crease he never scored enough or quickly enough.
All this criticism could have taken its toll on any other player but Rahul just working on his game and the results began to show and the icing on the cake is the man of the match award for his magnificent contribution in the Ahemdabad test against the Kiwis.
Rahul began to contribute in the one-day matches too and when he was asked to keep wickets in the one-day matches he obliged without a murmur. That’s an example of a perfect team man. And to top that his performances zoomed skywards. In the last 2 years he has been India’s most consistent player. He has 4 centuries in 4 test matches and 4 double hundreds now ahead of a certain Mr. Indian cricket himself (i.e Sachin Tendulkar).
With the Indian Cricket board appointing a fitness coach, Rahul worked as hard as anyone and today, is one of the fittest members in the team. To keep wickets for 50 overs and come out and bat for 30 overs in the heat is no mean feat, but Rahul did it in the world cup (ex. Matches against England, Pakistan).
Also he is humility personified and never shies away from learning, as recent reports of his attending the coaching modules in Scotland where he was playing county cricket. I have never seen him sledge unless provoked to the extreme as a certain Mr. Alan Donald might remember. Here too he prefers to let his bat do the talking rather than get into a war of words.
I in particular am a man of very extreme likes and dislikes and I disliked the way Dravid played and was one of his worst critics. But today I salute this great player who is the best player in the Indian team today. Period.
On the strength of his hard work, performances, humility and team spirit, Rahul today has managed to win over the cricket crazy people and the very critics (including yours truly) who were asking for his sacking from the team.
The best Indian player in the world today is Rahul Dravid.
A perfect gentleman, on and off the field. Indian cricket’s real superstar.
