In 1996, a 23-year-old young man with an intense look stepped into the Mecca of Cricket grounds at Lords (London) to bat for the first time in his career.
This young man, named Rahul Dravid was obsessed with technique. He was (and still is) a perfectionist to the last drop in his blood. Like all humans, he had his limitations – he could not score runs quickly. But, that did not depress him. He accepted his limitations and decided to grow beyond them, slowly, steadily, even if it takes years. He had begun a long journey and he took slow, steady steps, more like a marathon runner rather than a sprinter.
First, he was branded as a bore for his slow pace. Then he was renamed the Wall for his immaculate defense. But, Dravid remained unfazed. What makes him happy is the value he brings for the team. In a team filled with stroke players, Dravid remained the anchorman. The instruction given to him was to stay steadily at one end and tire out the bowlers. He did that job without the slightest complaint .
While the accolades and the attention went to the more gifted, more experienced and more natural stroke players, Dravid remained the unsung hero. Many a time, he blocked the fast bowlers tirelessly, ball after ball on the last day of a test match to ensure that India does not loose the match.
Dravid was dropped from the one-day team for being too slow – the very same job the team had instructed him to do. The positive thinker that he is, he did not cry foul or complain. He took it as a challenge. He made a few adjustments to his copybook game and started focusing on the result (scoring runs) without giving up his strength – immaculate technique. Soon he was back in the team, this time scoring runs quicker than before.
No batsman would attempt to keep wickets – It is a specialist s job and failure may cost your place in the team, but Dravid would do it –simply because he is convinced that it gives the team an option to bring in one more batsmen. He did make mistakes behind the stumps, but now he is the backbone of the one-day team. He utilized his stint behind the stumps to learn how bowlers think. The result was there for everyone to see – he became a better batsman in both versions of the game.
Like all the star performers, Rahul Dravid has a lot of detractors. But, Dravid never reacts to his critics, simply because he feels that doing what the team wants is more important than answering his critics. Dravid s cricketing career is the finest example of the fact that we all have limitations, but we can grow beyond them and be of immense value to the team we work for.
I believe that statistics is the best way to mislead an audience – so, I did not get into that. I also do not believe in comparisons and debates. The latest fashion is to debate who is better - Rahul or Sachin !! Rather than trigger that meaningless debate, it is better to observe the similarities (and differences, of course) in the careers of these great players. The similarity is that they both had their limitations, made a conscious choice to grow beyond their limitations and worked hard to overcome them, without losing focus on the team s cause.
Rahul Dravid s cricketing career will soon become a legend. He will be known as the man who walked in with limitations, worked hard and grew beyond them. A man whose joy came from the value he adds to the team. A man who took bouquets and brickbats in his stride , never for a moment losing focus on the goal – to contribute more to the cause of the team.
Men and Wine mature with age, goes the saying. Rahul Dravid has definitely matured as a batsman and as a team member eight years after making his debut.