Rahul Dravid , one of the most admired cricketers in the modern era announced his retirement from First Class Cricket yesterday. With his form dipping in the last few series he played, specially in the last Australian tour where he struggled to even get 1 century, the writing was on the wall for him , Tendulkar and Laxman ; the remaining greats in the Indian middle order completed by Saurav Ganguly who retired earlier. Rahul decided end his career. A glorious one of that.
As a cricket fanatic , I first got to know about Dravid through a cricket magazine. It had a picture of the man who has scored a lot of runs against a touring Sri Lankan A side. I didn't hear much from him after that, except when I saw that he was in the Indian Team for the tour of England in that same year.
Dravid is a player of patience , he can grind you as an opposition with his immaculate defense and footwork. His cover drive was so pleasing to the eye that when you see the bowl touch his bat , you know it is going to be four runs on most occasions. His temperament was extraordinary and I guess that is why , he was able to send the best of attacks to the cleaners. He was simply, a treat to watch.
I still remember how he and Ganguly just murdered our Sri Lankan Bowlers at Taunton in that world record partnership during the 1999 World Cup. Our guys simply didn't have an answer on how to bowl to him that day and we were lucky that he got out for a score around 150.
England has been a country where he has been successful from the day he debuted and it has been his second home when scoring runs. Even during his last tour to England, he was the highest run getter in the series. The guy should have got a PR for the entertainment he provided to the English and the World with his simply masterful stroke play.
Rahul was simply called " The Wall " by all cricket lovers simply because he was difficult to remove from the crease. Only a good bowler of true quality was able to get him out during his prime and even the great Shane Warne struggled to do it , even in his home country. The only overseas country he was bamboozled was in Sri Lanka when Ajantha Mendis debuted. That delivery Ajantha sent to dismiss Dravid to get his first international wicket, will surely linger in the minds of all cricket fans and I am sure, Dravid will never forget it as well.
Yet, Rahul did get his revenge from us when we toured India and scored a lot of runs against us during our last tour. That is the true quality of the man , who always persevered and worked so hard to be the best.
He was also a true gentleman and a great ambassador to the great game. His smile was always devoid of sarcasm. India has been really lucky to have such a cricketer in their ranks.
Farewell Mr. Rahul Dravid, it has been a privilege as a Sri Lankan to watch you play the game I love so much. Your cover drive will be a divine stroke that will roam around all the grounds you have played in and for sure, you are "The Great Wall of Indian Cricket" , that will never be repeated or will never be bought down forever.
Cheers !!
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