Rahul Dravid: The Great wall for the Indian Cricket team
Rahul Sharad Dravid is the name that itself raises eyebrows. However, the man himself raises the spirits. The right-handed batsman has adorned the sports with performances and impeccable persona over the years. Dravid is one of the great ambassadors for cricket in particular and sports in general who have made the sporting arena all the more beautiful and competitive. Known as a great wall of India due to his ability to bat for long durations, Rahul is one of the most experienced cricketers in the Indian national cricket team.
A cricketer whose utility to the Indian cricket team is unquestionable who seamlessly blends an old-world classicism with new-age professionalism. Born in Indore Madhya Pradesh on 11 January 1973, Rahul grew up in Bangalore in a simple middle class family. His father worked in a company known for producing jams and thus he earned the nickname Jammy at Saint Joseph's Boys' High School, Bangalore. Dravid acquired a degree in commerce from Saint Joseph's College of Commerce Bangalore, Karnataka.
Having started playing cricket at the age of 12, he represented the state at the under-15, under-17 and under-19 levels. Keki Tarapore, a former cricketer who was coaching at a summer coaching camp at the Chinnaswamy Stadium was the first man who spotted the talent of this great cricketer. Rahul scored a century on debut for his school team. Having scored two centuries in his first full season in 1991-1992, he was selected for the South Zone in the Duleep Trophy.
Rahul Dravid made his debut in One Day International Matches in a rather disappointing manner against Sri Lankan Cricket Team in the Singer Cup in Singapore 1995/96. Subsequently, he was dropped from the Indian side owing to his slowness as a batsman and was declared unfit for One Day cricket. However, unlike ordinary players, he rose to the occasion by replying in an inimitable fashion when he was picked up again for the tour of England.
He made his test debut in the second test match versus England along with Sourav Ganguly who stole the show at that time with his triple hundred. Although Rahul missed the century by just 5 runs, he justified his inclusion with a bang on his maiden tour to England. During the 1996 tour of South Africa, he came to the fore as the hard and bouncy pitches suited his batting style. With his savage pull and hook shots, he performed superbly against the fiery pace bowling of Fannie De Villiers, Brian Macmillan and Allan Donald. With his long duration of stay at the crease and his ultra defensive methods, Dravid frustrated the bowlers and stood like a rock in the home series against Australia, South Africa and Pakistan. He claimed his first man-of-the-match award during the 1996-97 tour of South Africa and hammered 148 and 81. During the Sahara Cup in 1996, he scored his first half century in the ODI’S versus Pakistan.
Dravid scored his second century against Zimbabwe in a 1998 one off test match but was unable to prevent an Indian defeat. During the 1999 New Year's Test match against New Zealand, he became the third Indian batsmen to score centuries in both innings of a match with 190 and 103 not out to force a draw. During 2002, Dravid established himself as India's premier test batsman and emerged out of Tendulkar’s shadow. He scored three double centuries in the 2003/04 season - one each against Pakistan, New Zealand and Australia.
As a result of his good show in the IPL for 2010 and problems being faced by the younger players' against the short ball, Dravid was called back to the Indian ODI team on 16th August, 2009. By the time, he blossomed himself into a classical stroke player who was able to score at a fast clip now. Rahul Dravid is a great inspiration for youngsters. Instead of throwing his head back in a disgusting manner, Dravid can be seen checking his shot to find out the error after every single dismissal. With his well cultured admirable behaviour, he has set a great example of discipline, dedication and determination. His graph as a player teaches us how he has maximized his potential as nothing good comes easy in life and the journey still continues with patience and persistence that leads to perfection.
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