Those were the early days for me as a cricket lover, early
enough for not being able to be recalled exactly but I noticed something in a
cricketer which made me follow him every time he came to bat. When Sachin was
scripting some of finest wins for India, when nation was busy adoring the
magical wristy shots of Azhar, I was being fascinated by a not so liked
cricketer those days. I don’t know why, I don’t remember how but I had
developed a liking for this man. My friends would often abuse him for his slow batting;
making me angry but to be honest I really did not have anything to defend my
choice. Today, almost 12-13 years after, when I am writing this article, I must
say, I fell for one of the finest man to have played this game.
Things were not easy for Rahul in his initial days, no doubt
he had impressed one and all as a test batsman, but his success as one day
batsman came somewhat later. He was not blessed with power of Sehwag or ability
to dominate the bowling like Sachin did but he kept working hard, kept placing
brick after brick in the wall to make it
high enough not to be climbed, strong enough not to be demolished easily. Slowly
and steadily he had shown his importance as a one day batsman too. In between
he kept producing some marvelous knocks which were often overshadowed by his
fellow partners. We often mention Laxman’s magical 281 in Eden’s test but we
find it tough to praise Rahul’s gritty 180 in the same match, considering the
pressure he was under after being replaced by VVS at no. 3 due to failure in
first innings. What was the common thing in Sachin’s 186 against New Zeland or Saurav’s
183 against Srilanka; they were some uncharacteristic flamboyant centuries by
Rahul Dravid at the other end. Often denied the respect and credit he deserved,
this man kept sacrificing, adjusting and accepting whatever was thrown at him
in order to serve the cause as a team man. But it was his ardent character that
kept him going and going. When the bowling attacks were hostile, pitches were
unplayable, conditions were adverse, he was the perfect man to bat for India.
My love for him kept growing and growing. It was not just his batting that was
adored but his temperament, his never dying attitude, his calmness, his
humility, his character that had a magic far beyond one’s ability to escape. His
ever-growing fan list not just included cricket fans like me but likes of Glenn
Mcgrath, Brain Lara, Shane Warne and others who chose him as a batsman to bat
for saving their lives (if required). Time and again he has been described as a
perfect role model for youngsters and rightly so because he is one guy who is a
perfect example to tell you that what if you are not born genius, what if you
are not so gifted, you have a perfect weapon called hard work which can take
you on the top. And boy he made it to the top, didn’t he?! Statistically, he
was ICC’s cricketer of the year and test cricketer of the year when these awards
were inaugurated. He has achieved some feats which even Sachin (as batsman) and
Dhoni (as captain) failed to achieve.
Quoting Harsha Bhogle “There were two things Dravid didn't really love in cricket:
opening the batting and keeping wicket. He was asked to do both at various
times, and I asked him if he ever contemplated saying no. He didn't enjoy it,
he said, but took it as a challenge, to see how good he could be. This
acceptance of challenges is what has defined his cricket and made him one of
the finest team players there has been.”
Rahul
believed in the philosophy “for the strength of the wolf is the pack and the
strength of the pack is the wolf.” And he justified this throughout his
cricketing career. As mentioned by Harsha, he never enjoyed opening but who
could forget his heroics in last Oval test during England tour where he had but
ten minutes between deliveries as he batted through the innings for six and a
half hours, before returning to open the batting. These magic moments
always made us to amaze at the nerves of this cricketer.
Rahul, words
cannot describe what you have given to me as your fan. I might be one of those
millions of such fans, adoring you for years but for me, you would remain to be
one of the finest memories I would like to carry to my grave. Its true cricket
would continue at its pace after your retirement, but it would not be the same
for me.
Thank you
Rahul! Thanks for blessing me with sheer magic!
Aahh… I wish
I could rewind the time by a decade or so…. Rahul, you would be missed!
