Is Rahul Dravid going to say final good bye? Picture courtesy: Wikipedia. Author: Is Rahul Dravid going to say good bye?.
Reports are emerging that Rahul Dravid, India’s star batsman, is finally going to call it a day. Dravid was sensational last year but his batting dipped in Australia. He was bowled six times in the 8 innings. Apart from that he was bowled off a no-ball. There were no evidences of his mastery defense. To say he was a shadow of a man we knew will be an understatement. His form was extremely patchy. He scored only 194 runs at an average of 24.25 with a highest score of 68. Dravid has already retired from the two shorter formats.
Dravid is believed to have told some of his teammates after another failure in Australia. He is currently behind Tendulkar in the list of highest run scorers in test cricket with 13,288 runs. He has also taken the most number of catches (210). He is the first batsman to register a score of 100 in all test playing nations. He was the first recipient of the ICC test player of the year and cricketer of the year awards in 2004.
Rahul Dravid, fondly called as “The Wall”, is central to many test wins outside India. He has one of the best defensive technique among his contemporaries. A selfless man who has sacrificed many of his personal wishes for the team. He was ready to take the gloves when Saurav Ganguly and John Wright wanted to play an extra batsman in the limited overs format. It worked wonderfully well in the 2003 World Cup.
Cometh the hour, cometh the man. When India needed a savior, only Dravid came to the mind. On numerous occasions when the openers have failed, Dravid was pushed to open. He took the challenge and did the job gracefully. A number of injuries ruled some of the ODI specialists out of the England tour. The man recalled again to face the tough conditions. He was surprised. When Sehwag was out of the side during the Champions trophy, the man was recalled again. The man was ideal for tough conditions.
Rahul Dravid has featured in many memorable partnerships. He has featured in a total of 88 100 run partnerships. He has had a special relationship with Sachin Tendulkar with whom he has scored 6920 runs. The duo has also put on 20 100 run partnership. None can forget the 376 run stand between him and VVS Laxman at Kolkata.
Dravid is one of the very few perfect role model for youngsters. A true gentleman. ”If Rahul Dravid retires, the team of 11 men will be left without a gentleman” tweeted MTV INDIA. He became the first non-Australian to deliver the Bradman Oration on 14 December 2011. His points were as crisp as his drives.
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