Tuesday, July 5, 2011

India favourites in Dominica's Test debut

8:44:00 AM RG87 1 comment

Cricinfo Preview by Nitin Sundar

Match facts

July 6-10, Dominica
Start time 1000 (1400 GMT, 1930 IST)

An interesting picture of Harbhajan Singh in his delivery stride, West Indies v India, 1st Test, Kingston, 2nd day, June 21, 2011

Does Harbhajan have it in him to face the reality of his form slump? © AFP

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'Some of the toughest pitches I've faced' - Dravid

2:58:00 AM RG87 1 comment

ESPNcricinfo staff

Rahul Dravid has described India's Test series against West Indies as a tough learning experience for the younger batsmen and he hopes it will hold them in good stead for the future. India have not posted 300-plus in any of the four innings so far, but they lead the three-Test series 1-0 heading in to the final match.

"It's been tough for the batsmen," Dravid said. "It's not been easy for young batsmen to come in and face the new ball on these tracks. I have played four tours here and this has been some of the toughest tracks I have faced. Guys will learn a lot from this experience. It will hold them in good stead. As I was telling some of them they probably might not play on these kinds of tracks."

The likes of Virat Kohli and M Vijay haven't really come to the terms with the pitches and neither man has made 50 runs for the whole series. Vijay battled hard for nearly two hours in the first innings in Barbados and Kohli fought hard in the second innings but neither converted their starts. Abhinav Mukund made 48 in the second innings but couldn't carry on. Dravid felt that in the circumstances, India's batting had held up well.

"It's been a tough, hard series from the batsmen's perspective," he said. "The tracks have been slightly tilted towards bowlers, which is good. The West Indies' bowling has been good. From that perspective we have been challenged in this series and that has been good. People might say the batting hasn't fired but in the context of the series we have not done too badly. The tracks have had pace and bounce compared to the tracks they played in ODIs and tracks we played last time. If not for rain in Barbados we would have had two results."

Rahul Dravid sways out of the path of a short one, West Indies v India, 2nd Test, Bridgetown, 4th day, July 1, 2011

Rahul Dravid says the batsmen have had to work hard on difficult pitches © Associated Press

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Dravid counted Ishant Sharma as one of the big positives to emerge from this series. "Ishant has been sensational. Praveen Kumar, Harbhajan Singh, Abhimanyu Mithun and Amit Mishra all have done their job. The slip catching has been good. Touch wood, I hope I don't jinx it but slip catching has been top class. These are all the positives."

Ishant suffered a light cut under his eye while playing football in the training session today but Dravid said the injury wasn't serious. "Ishant has just a small bruise. A little bit of cut. He should be fine."

Dravid said India would go in to the final Test in Dominica with a winning mindset, rather than opting for safety first and trying to keep their 1-0 lead. "The Test match is an important one," Dravid said. "We are not worrying about the series. We've got the team to win this Test match. We would have liked to win the series in Barbados but to lose 130 overs due to rain was disappointing. We were in control of that Test match, especially from the second innings onwards. This is a good chance to win a series here again. We have to put up five days of big performance here."

Dravid said he hadn't seen the pitch yet but that he believed it would have some pace and bounce. "There will be some good atmosphere - this is the first Test match here and I believe when a one-day match was played here there was good crowd," he said. "Hopefully they will come in for the Test."

Rahul Dravid: My GOD of Cricket

7:17:00 AM RG87 No comments

skagrawal4k @ SportsKeeda

After his 32nd Test century in WI

Well, though this article is about Rahul Dravid, as you go through it, you might find references and comparisons to other great Indian Cricketers, most notably Sachin Tendulkar because time and again we have seen that when some columnist talks about Dravid, he invariably makes a mention of Sachin and i am no different, though vice versa may not be true. You can find enough material written about Sachin without mentioning any other cricketer. And if you find me biased, Please excuse me for that.

Not so long time ago, A young Rahul Dravid made his tryst with Destiny when he debuted at Lords’ in England(i say not so long time ago because it seems like yesterday when i was at my Maternal grand mother’s home to spend my summer vacations and i saw him bat for the first time). Time Really flies by. Rahul Dravid struck an instant cord with me. What better place could destiny choose for the arrival of My GOD of Cricket on International cricket circuit than the Mecca of Cricket itself!!
And now 15yrs later, he continues to do what he does best, that being, guiding Team India to glorious Test victories on foreign soil pretty much single-handedly and maintaining a low profile.

The Three Muskeeteers

Dravid is probably the most ‘under-talked about’ Cricketing Great. He never mind living in the shadows of The Great Sachin Tendulkar- The God of Cricket and The Maverick Sourav Ganguly- The God on Off-side as said by Dravid himself. His stint with getting over-shadowed started way back on his debut itself. Since then, its been a trend. Whenever Dravid excelled, someone over-shadowed him be it Sachin, Ganguly, Laxman, Sehvag or anybody else. And this has happened on more than one occasion. What people don’t realise is that on all such occasions, there were different people on one end, but there was one person consistently on the other end. Silently going about his work, Dravid carved his own Legend in the Tales of Indian Cricket.
When he first started, Dravid was tagged as a Test Specialist, and probably he was, because that was his natural style of playing. He wasn’t a gifted talent like Sachin but he adapted to the needs of the current style of cricket. He wasn’t Born Great but He became Great.
Before being dumped from Indian ODI team unceremoniously after the 7 match ODI series against Aussies in 2007 in favor of promoting the ‘Young Guns’, he had gone on to score 10,000 + runs in One day Cricket. But that still doesn’t deter people from saying that he is a test player. As they say, First Impression is the Last Impression.
We Indians by default are extremists and our minds are not flexible. We just don’t want to see how this man went against his natural play and adapted himself to the needs of ODI cricket and actually developed as a Finisher batting at Position 5 or 6 for India. He even donned the wicket-keeping gloves for the sake of the team. While some people call it a compromise to salvage his place in the team, i choose to call it ‘Sacrifice’ because it seems so out of place to say that a man who went on to score 10,000 runs and who was the vice-captain of the side was actually trying to salvage his place. But in Indian Cricket, there are no points for Adaptability. Once a Test Player, always a Test Player. Even the IPL team which was assimilated by him in the first season was termed as a Test Team. Though everybody forgot that the same team went on to play finals in IPL-2.
But nothing matters. People still love to mock Rahul. The other day, when RR was playing against MI at their home ground and trounced them by 10 wickets, at one point, Rahul was batting on 17 and Shane Watson on 71. A guy in my Hostel Common Room made this interesting observation and the other guys felt it their National Duty to laugh at it. I felt really annoyed and wanted to ask him, where the hell were you the day when RR had 84 runs on board against CSK and Dravid had scored 66 of those?? Ironically, India’s 2nd fastest 50 in ODI has been scored by Dravid.
But i guess his Credentials regarding Faster Format of the game will always remain doubtful. and i will never understand why. Because the stats tell me that He scores just 2runs/100 balls slower than the ODI specialist Sourav Ganguly. Even in IPL, he is the 13th highest run-getter, with a strike rate better than the likes of Kallis, Ganguly, Gibbs, Duminy and Graeme Smith, and an average better than Gilchrist, Yusuf pathan, Yuvraj, Uthappa and many other so called Specialists of Faster format. He was the highest run-scorer for RR this season for God’s sake. I guess its just a Taboo that Rahul has to live with forever. Not that he minds it, but i do being his Staunch Fan.
I wonder why he dont deserve to be in the ODI Team or Why He didn’t deserve to touch the WC Trophy or Why He didn’t deserve to be retained by his IPL Team or Why He doesn’t deserve as much money at the auctions as the ‘Gods’ and the ‘Guns’ or Why He doesn’t deserve the world’s attention or Why the commentators, expert columnists, fans, media, and franchisees shouldn’t go ga-ga over Rahul Dravid. Why??
May be because he is not entertaining because to be entertaining, you need to dance on the wicket(like Kevin Peterson) or down the wicket, because he is not vocal or expresses his emotions in public, he is not flashy, he doesn’t give tantrums, He doesn’t give you stare in the eyes with Cameras taking close shots of your face, he doesn’t have hook-ups with bollywood heroines(the only thing he hooks beautifully is a bouncer), or may be because He doesn’t pull of his shirt, may be because he is not surrounded by controversies. May be his biggest sin was playing in the era of The great Sachin, because in any other era, may be 10 years before Sachin or 10 years after Sachin, it would have been Dravid’s era, or may be his biggest sin is that He manages all those runs in IPL and Tests with just 19 sixes each.
If only he had learnt to hit 6′s, If only he was as Lucky as Dhoni, If only he had learnt not to be a Gentleman both on and off the field, if only he was flamboyant enough to be in news for all the right or the wrong reasons, He would have been something else. May be then he would have been a hit amongst the Media and the Corporate franchisees. But Thank god he is not all of that because then he probably wouldn’t have been my God of Cricket.
Now Dravid is just Playing Tests, 14-20 innings in an year, always under scrutiny. One failure, and people want to hang his boots till death. Unlike other players who have the chance to redeem themselves in the ODIs and T20s if they fail in tests.
Unfazed by all these questions and scrutinies, Dravid is still silently going about doing his job, that being guiding India to Famous Test wins on Foreign Soil.
Soon he will be standing at the same place where he started his journey in International Test Arena for the 4th and probably the last time. Another circle will be completed. From there on, how long Dravid will extend the arc, nobody knows. But sooner or later He will hang his boots and so will Sachin Tendulkar. They Both will Walk away. One with all the glory and Spot-lights, other will just walk away into oblivion helding his head high. Rahul could never manage to be in media spotlight even when he is/was active in cricket. How can we expect him to remain in limelight after his retirement(Probably with Sachin around, Media has enough on plate. They don’t feel like talking about anyone else. Thats why Sachin completed his 50th 100 in Test matches and everybody rejoiced, but Dravid completed 12,000 runs in the same match and nobody realised). One will remain etched in memories of crores of Indians with the list of all the records and the Tag of ‘God Of Cricket’, other will just vanish.
But one thing makes me wonder. Would Sachin be able to amass all those glory and records had Rahul not been there?

Case Study: India vs England at Leeds in August 2002. A deadly Pitch and some furious bowling. Rahul Dravid and Sanjay Bangar put up a brave front. Bangar went on to score 90 odd runs while Dravid made a fighting 148. But in the Same innings Sachin scored 193 runs. Inspite of which, it was Dravid who was awarded Man of the match award because everybody realised that the amount of Grit, Courage, Struggle and Sweat that went into those 193 was not even half of what went into those 148.

The above was a Prime example of how Dravid usually makes it easier for the later batsmen to score runs. Because by the time Sachin or Sourav arrived, the bowlers were already tired and frustrated, the bounce and movement had decreased and the dew had evaporated.
I wonder if Dravid was not there to score those 148, could Sachin still have gone on to score those 193?? May be..May be not. We will never know but Dravid has played not one but many such innings.
As they say, In a Temple, Even ‘God’ lives behind and protected by ‘The Wall’. If there was no ‘Wall’ to weather the storm as Dravid himself puts it, i don’t know how much greatness could the ‘God’ have achieved. There is no Genius who is genius enough or a Super computer which is advanced enough to estimate or compute Dravid’s contributions in Sachin’s Greatness. And we will never know. But i dont care.

The Writing is on The 'Wall'

For me Rahul Dravid is My God of Cricket. When i stand outside the ‘Temple of Cricket’, i wouldn’t care about the ‘God’ sitting inside. I’d rather bow to the weared and teared ‘Wall’ outside and walk away.

Currently, Cricket has become a dirty Game of Slogging, edges and ugly unorthodox 6′s and 4′s. They play all sorts of weird looking shots which resemble more like Tennis, Golf or Baseball shots. There is also one Helicopter Shot. Few people call it Gully Cricket. I call it Ugly Cricket. Thank God, I have Rahul Dravid. His Drives are still awesome and his Hooks, Pulls and Square Cuts are still Pure Divine. I’m watching Cricket as long as Rahul Dravid is playing the shots.
Love You RD. But more than that, I Respect you for all that you have done for the Cricket, Team India and for me. You are a Hero. May be unsung, but still a Hero.

Written By : skagrawal4k 587 Reads

Why Rahul Dravid is my favourite cricketer

7:14:00 AM RG87 No comments

k77sujith @ The Roar

Coming from India, I am sure it surprises many that I haven’t mentioned my favourite cricketer as Sachin Tendulkar.
Make no mistake, I am a huge fan of the Little Master and I hope there would never come a time when he decides to call it quits.
However, there is one man who has always been in the shadows of Saurav Ganguly and Tendulkar, one who has quietly and religiously gone about his business – ‘The Wall’ Rahul Dravid.
Despite being recognized as one of the most mentally strong cricketers the game has ever seen, he has always preferred to stay away from the spotlight and let his performances do the talking.
Dravid, along with Ganguly, burst onto the scene with his brilliant batting efforts in a Test match at Lord’s against England in 1996. He exhibits brilliant batting technique, be it defence or offence and is supremely sincere and dedicated to his craft.
Dravid has constantly improved his technique over the years and has adapted to the different modes of the game. Like the Little Master, Dravid is a highly disciplined cricketer who has seldom been embroiled in controversy.
Dravid is a hard-as-nails gentleman who commands respect on the field, not just from his team-mates but from the opposition as well. Ask Allan Donald!
He is not identified with flamboyance when it comes to batting; the Sehwags and the Gayles handle that feature of the game. Dravid is duly respected for his determination, temperament and endurance at the crease.
He is a master when it comes to wearing out the opposition in the extended form of the game and works exceptionally hard in executing his role in conventional fashion.
One can argue pointing out that his batting is mind-numbing but having cemented the all-important number three position in the batting order for a long time, he is expected to hold up one end while the other batsmen take their chances playing around him. And how well he has executed and glorified this role for over 15 years at the top level against all international teams.
More importantly, he has done this, playing away from home, when most of his team-mates have struggled to cope with the bounce and pace on foreign pitches.
It is also worth pointing out that Dravid is a very dependable slip fielder and has accounted for numerous dismissals in tandem with Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh and other pacers, fielding in the slip cordon.
Dravid has been a pillar of strength and support for the team and has on many occasions bailed the team out of trouble through sheer application.
Who can forget his contribution of 180 runs along with VVS Laxman in one of the most dramatic Test matches in Kolkata in 2001 when the two of them took India to victory from the brink of defeat?
I would run out of space and superlatives if I had to hand-pick his best innings as there are several of them.
Despite being a very accomplished player, throughout his career, Dravid has had to deal with a lot of criticism from both the media and selectors for his ‘inability’ to compete in the one-day format.
It is true that initially, he did struggle to come to grips with the shorter version of the game. He was deemed incapable as his detractors thought he could not rotate the strike and was unable to score runs at a brisk pace.
In typical Dravidesque fashion, without making a noise about the entire backlash, he took it all in his stride, put in the hard yards, worked on his weaknesses, honed his skills and evolved to become one of the most reliable one-day batsmen in the game.
The fact that he has scored over 10,000 runs in both forms of the game easily propels him to the list of greats.
Without doubt, Dravid is a legend and a perfect role model for wannabe cricketers. Moreover, he is a picture of discipline and integrity and a living example of someone who never rests on past success and constantly strives for improvement and he does not consider himself bigger than the sport.
‘The Wall’, as they say, never crumbles.

Dravid Statistical Highlights After 2nd Test

7:10:00 AM RG87 No comments

# Rahul Dravid (55) has recorded his second highest innings at Bridgetown -- the highest being 78 in March 1997.
# Dravid's knock is his 11th fifty against the West Indies.
# Dravid is the first player to complete 200 runs in the present series, totalling 212 (ave.53.00), including one hundred and one fifty.
# Dravid (6996 at an average of 53.81 in 85 Tests) needs just four runs to complete his 7,000 runs overseas.
# Dravid now holds an Indian record with his 60th fifty, eclipsing Sachin Tendulkar's tally of 59 fifties.
# Dravid is the second batsman to post 60 fifties in Tests, joining Allan Border (63).
# Rahul Dravid is the first player to appear in 200 innings at number three in Test cricket.

Mukund says batting with Dravid helped

7:06:00 AM RG87 No comments

@IEWY News

After contributing to India’s cause by scoring 48 runs in the second innings, opener Abhinav Mukund said he took inspiration from the rival batting line-up.
“Sitting at forward short leg and watching ( Marlon) Samuels and (Shivnarine) Chanderpaul bat, I took a leaf (out of their book),” said Mukund after his career-boosting knock at the Kensington Oval on Friday.
“The two were playing too late. Chanderpaul was leaving a lot of balls which were close (to the off stump) also. I too wanted to play as late and leave as many as possible,” remarked Mukund who shared an important 63-run second wicket stand with Rahul Dravid.
His innings somewhat redeemed the tour for Mukund after his failures in the first three Test knocks of his international career.
“We (the two openers) didn’t have enough time to adjust. We landed here just three days before (the first Test). It’s been tough, I can be honest about it. The bounce is really steep. But I feel it’s good for me that I have played in tough conditions.”
Mukund was hit on his helmet by one such steep bouncer from Edwards and he remembers the delivery as a really quick one.
“Any human being will tell you (it hurts). When you are hit, your body tells you are at war. It’s a state of shock. But I wanted to convince myself I could face Test bowling.”

Mukund said a punched drive he executed off Edwards in the second innings of the first Test gave him a lot of confidence.
“I remember the shot I played in the second innings of the first Test, punching Fidel (Edwards) for four. I felt confident that I could straight drive too (at this level).”
Mukund revealed he couldn’t sleep much ahead of his first Test at Jamaica last week.
“I didn’t sleep much on the night before the first Test. My body clock wasn’t set either. I remember the first over I played in Test cricket. I was nervous but I didn’t try to do anything about it.”
Having been nervous, it still surprised most that Mukund preferred to take first strike rather than his more experienced partner Murali Vijay go for it.
“I told him that I would take the first strike. I have always taken the first strike, even at Ranji Trophy level. It isn’t as if he didn’t want to face first.”
Mukund termed it a fortunate coincidence that he has played with the first five batters of the present Indian line-up.
“I am fortunate that I have played with all the first five batters previously. It is a really comfortable atmosphere in the dressing room.
“Having batted with Dravid today, you learn a lot. He is gutsy, he keeps talking to himself in the centre. He kept telling me watch the ball, watch the ball.”
Mukund termed the Kensington Oval pitch as unpredictable. “A few deliveries rise off a length. The new ball holds the key, for them and for us as well. If the weather is good,, it could be a good Test match.”

India's batting line-up can grind any pace attack: Tremlett

7:01:00 AM RG87 No comments

ANI Jul 3, 2011, 12.37pm IST @TOI
LONDON: England pacer Chris Tremlett is fully aware that it is not easy to bowl to India's star studded batting line-up, as the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman are capable of crushing any pace attack in the world.
The Hampshire-born pacer made his England debut against India at Lord's in 2007 in an ill-tempered series that the tourists won 1-0.
After shining against Sri Lanka in the on going series and getting into the top 10 of the ICC bowling rankings, Tremlett is ready to take on the ultimate test in world cricket to stop India's batting line-up.

Chris Tremlett is worried of India's star studded batting line-up. (TOI Photo)

Tremlett said: "If they've got all their main players playing then it will be tougher than Sri Lanka - they're the number one side in the world for a reason."
"I played in 2007 which was obviously a great experience for me. We lost that series even though I don't think we bowled too badly," he said.
"They are probably the hardest batsmen in the world to get out - they're certainly the most patient," Tremlett said.
"For a bowler, taking on that batting line-up is as big as it gets because they will grind you down. They are never in a hurry to get their runs," The Mirror quoted him, as saying
Since coming back into the England side Tremlett has taken 32 wickets at an average of just over 23.

The Rise of the Indian Cricket Fan

6:58:00 AM RG87 No comments

by Freehit @ Sportskeeda

The rise of Indian cricket in recent years has been an emotional ride for the nation's die-hard fans

At the start of the previous decade as a young 9-year old, I was a fan of Steve Waugh and his dominant Australian side. Keenly following Australian cricket was in fact, one of my favourite hobbies. There were so many wonderful players who would turn the game on their head when least expected. Everytime the chips would be down, someone would put their hand up and pull out the team from the jaws of defeat.

Seeing India win would obviously make me happy, but phrases like “India ka kuch nahi ho sakta”(translation: India can’t make it big) were heard far too often. They were an talented yet inconsistent side. As Indian fans who followed the game in the 80’s and 90’s would tell you, there were far too many heart breaks.
Then came the Kolkata test of 2001. India performed poorly in the first two innings after having already lost the first match. Even the Australian fan inside me wasn’t enjoying such bashing that the Indians were getting. Like many others, I too believed this test would decide the series in Australia’s favour.

The Marathon innings: Unforgettable moment in Indian cricketing history

Then came the 3^rd day, where VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid were batting at start of play. They batted and batted AND batted, all day long. As Steve Waugh later said “It seemed as if their bats got wider with every ball.” I can still remember Zaheer Khan walking off the field as India declared on 657-7 after following on. Heroics of Harbhajan Singh meant we had stopped the mighty Australians in their prime. The Indian in me smiled. No prizes for guessing who I supported in the final test of that series.

Fast forward to the 2002. India were visiting England and just a day before the series was about to start, various news channels and newspapers kept talking about how India had always failed in English conditions. It seemed as if hardly anyone in media believed that the team could fight. For some reason, I had this intuition that India would do much better than expected. It had no cricketing logic associated with it. Just that I still had the memories of Kolkata test of last year and other wins around that time. So, I was hopeful that they would come up with a respectable performance.

The Natwest Series Triumph: The day the nation woke up to new heroes

Nasser Hussain’s men were stunned as two hardly known youngsters by the name of Mohammed Kaif and Yuvraj Singh snatched victory out of no where to chase down a massive 325. No longer were we dependent only on Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid or Anil Kumble as another youngster Zaheer Khan emerged as the highest wicket taker for the ODI series. Then came the 4-match test series. Having not won any test series in England for 15 years, India’s chances at best, were not great.

The test series finished at 1-1, thanks mainly to the efforts of Kumble, Zaheer, Harbhajan and of course, Dravid in his fluent prime. How many in India, would have bet on India coming back without losing the series ? Hardly anyone. From being pushovers overseas, India had started showing fight.

The batting was looking superb from Virender Sehwag at top till the late middle-order, all filled with classy players. A lot of other things were changing too. The bowling was getting better all the time and India had started its journey towards being consistent. The feel-good factor started kicking in and everyone back home, supported the team with their full heart. Fielding was now given a lot more importance and to see Kaif, Yuvraj among others dive around gave us immense pride. As Indians, we were tired of the tag of being clumpsy in field and felt glad that we were improving on this important aspect.

All those who felt the Natwest win was just a fluke were silenced as the team showed they could perform repeatedly under pressure by chasing 325 yet again in Ahmedabad against West Indies. The players were getting better at holding their nerve and giving their best when the chips were down. Probably the most important thing that was changing was their attitude. We had learnt to never back down in a fight. Two incidences I particularly remember I are Ganguly’s shirt waving at Lord’s and later, Rahul Dravid staring back at Mohammed Sami in Pakistan.

By the time 2003 World Cup started, India had a good balanced team and hence a fair chance. However, the Australians were clear favourites and in spite of Steve Waugh’s absence, I was hoping they would do well. India, managed to win 9 out of 11 matches during this campaign, but unfortunately, the two they lost were one-sided defeats to eventual winners Australia. Nevertheless, India had come a long way from their previous World Cup showing in 1999. The ’03 WC had some amazing performances from various Indian players, with the star being Sachin Tendulkar.

The Adelaide Test of ’03 was wonderful for Indians who dearly wanted to beat Australia after the bashing at the WC Final. The heroes of Kolkata ’01 stood tall yet again and made sure that Australia were trailing in a test series down under. This didn’t happen too often those days, after all, Australia had been the #1 team for quite a while. As one of my heroes, Steve Waugh retired from international cricket, Dravid was steadily becoming my favourite and has remained ever since.

With the departure of the Aussie captain, my inclination towards Australian cricket decreased for sure. However I remained a fan of these men, since their fitness, skill and ability to handle different situations was very professional and impressive. Good thing was that Indian cricket was taking major but silent steps towards becoming a superb team. Whether at home or abroad, India was becoming more and more competitive and determined.

The second match that I saw live in a stadium(1^st that I actually remember watching),was India v England at Faridabad in 2006. Sure, I did appreciate Kevin Pietersen’s aggressive batting, but it was no match to Suresh Raina’s match-winning 81 or Ramesh Powar’s 3-wicket haul. India winning the match gave me pride I hadn’t felt before. One lesson I learnt that day, was Cricket united us like nothing else can. The same people who were fighting during the match were celebrating together once Irfan Pathan scored the winning runs.
By the time India had won its first test series in West Indies in 35 years, I had become a proud Indian supporter(and a Dravid fanboy). Not many expected India to win, after all it was only the second time we managed to pull it off. Ever since, I easily get nervous if India has a weak start to some game or I get filled with pride as India demolish the opposition. Indian cricket has given me reasons to celebrate over and over again.
Yes, there have been some low points like the 2007 World Cup. But, victories in England Test series ’07, Perth test ’08, CB ODI Series in Australia ’08, Chennai test ’08, Napier ’09, Mohali test ’10 and of course, Durban test ’10, has given us all the reasons to believe in this Indian line-up.

Reaching the Promised Land

Then came the World Cup of 2011, co-hosted by India. After the sour memories of the ’07, Indians badly wanted to win this and the team did not disappoint us. They may not have had a brilliant start to the campaign but players put their hand up at the right time and peaked to take a big step towards being #1 in the world.
I followed the team in Delhi, Ahmedabad and Mohali and it gave me immense pride to see the men in blue lift the coveted prize. I was hooked to the game since a kid, but it has never been this easy to stay up till 3 AM to watch India’s matches. People easily forget their tensions and problems as their own team, the Indian team keeps on doing well. My transformation into an absolute Indian supporter was complete about 5 years ago, but this has easily been the sweetest phase of supporting team. Here’s hoping that this is just the start to a long phase of being the best in the sport.

Being Rahul Dravid

3:25:00 AM RG87 No comments

By Radhakrishnan Sreenivasan for DNA
Being Rahul Dravid is possibly one of the tougher vocations in modern day sport. For starters, he has to prove to himself he has the mind and more importantly the body to score runs at the highest level; then convince the world he is not far away from the Dravid they are used to seeing. I remember Sachin Tendulkar telling me once, when he started his career, it was the mind that he was more worried about and as he entered his third decade in international cricket, it was more the body that needed attention.

At 38, there’s always an added pressure besides the rigours that international sport presents anyways. That’s the pressure that doesn’t necessarily comes from within. When Rahul does get runs as he did in Sabina Park, people will start talking about his class and experience. He would have pleased the romantics who have always stood by him anyhow and would have managed to silence the critics for a while. Yes, he did get a reprieve early in his innings, but those are the kinds of things that need to go your way in the midst of a battle. He was the first man to step on to the field on Day Three of the Test and he was pretty much the last man to get off it — a total of six hours and 42 minutes at the crease. He faced close to 50 overs. The strike rate was its usual humble self and the job was done. “Physically it was a bit of challenge. I have not played a Test match for the last six months. So it was physically tough and I am a bit tired at the moment”, Rahul had commented.
He has always scored runs at the Sabina Park in Kingston but why should this one be so special for himself to begin with? The last time he was there, he was the captain, the Man of the Match and the Man of the Series. The world was different. He had averaged close to 60. In the preceding nine Tests beginning the series of Pakistan in 2006, he averaged a whopping 73.36 and he was 33 years old. Compare that to where he is now. In fact, since the last time he played that innings at Kingston, a fighting 81, he’s averaged little over 40 — a number that Rahul wouldn’t be proud ofand it has stayed that way over the last year and a half. “I enjoyed the contest. That’s what you play at this stage of your career. You play for making important contributions for your team. When you find that you can make some difference and every time you play you want to score. So it’s nice to score runs at this point.” That was Dravid’s comments after he had put his name up for the Man of the Match award.
The challenge comes from keeping yourself motivated for the battle that comes your way once in a while these days. A flirt with the shortest format of the game is the only “competition” that he faces at the highest level. Barring that, he’s within the walls of his mind, convincing that he can do the job when the opportunity presents itself. Talking to the likes of Sunil Joshi and Dav Whatmore who have been around the National Cricket Academy and know Dravid a lot better, the message is clear — you don’t find too many more committed cricketers than him sweating towards perfection. The challenge comes from realising you are not getting any younger. Putting those aside to one corner of your mind is the biggest challenge.
It’s a big summer and Dravid knows that. Seven Test matches at a stretch is a feast for someone who wants to stay put at the top for a while longer. Every day from here will be an interesting mix. While the hard yards are necessary to carry the legs a bit further, the sense of fulfillment and enjoyment will be his priority. In fact some of the very best with whom I have had an opportunity to chat about tell me it’s perhaps about having the same mindset when you first held a cricket bat. It was more play and less work.

Rahul Dravid: Patience Personified

9:28:00 PM RG87 No comments

Vineeth S @ SportsKeeda

The Wall: Still going strong

If one has grown up watching cricket in the 90’s and 2000’s, then the Indian middle order quartet will have been missed when Sourav Ganguly retired in 2008. Three years on, the remaining three soldiers are still going strong, with dogged match winning performances. At 38 years of age, Rahul Dravid has now completed 15 years of international cricket. He is currently the oldest active cricketer in the game, and continues to come up with staggering performances. On the day he scored his 32^nd Test century against West Indies, here is a look back at his mantra for success, and some of his most memorable Test knocks.
Clearly, the USP of his batting is his patience. He is prepared for the hard grind and sets himself for the long haul every time he has the willow in his hand. He had the best technique among Indian batsmen in his prime, better than even Sachin Tendulkar. He also has an amazing away Test record , which almost mirrors his home Tests record. It did not seem to matter whether the wicket was a fast, bouncy one like Perth or a seaming, grass laden Trent Bridge wicket or a dust bowl in Mumbai, runs flowed off his bat irrespective. When he started out, occupation of the crease was his forte and runs would be accumulated slowly. Over time, and playing limited overs cricket, he brought in innovations in his game and got his runs at a fair clip. Over the last couple of years, with age catching up and not being in the best of form, he has gone back to his accumulation mode, which has begun to serve him well again.
Nicknamed the wall, he would block one end completely so that bowlers would get so exasperated and try getting the batsman at the other end. Also, one cannot remember him having problems against a particular type of bowler and this could be attributed to his impeccable technique. Minor flaws did creep into his game a couple of years ago, but he worked hard at the nets and overcame the flaw. Batting long hours never seemed a problem, and as demonstrated against the Windies now, he has still got it. Captaincy did not seem to affect his batting one bit , in fact the added responsibility added as a boost. His 112 in more than 6 hours at Jamaica in 2011 is not the first instance of batting long periods. Here’s a look back at some of his defining performance in the five day format.
148 at Johannesburg Vs South Africa, 1997
It was his first Test century and came in his 9^th Test match. India had a tough tour till then losing both Tests by huge margins. A patient century by Rahul Dravid against a pace battery of Donald, Mcmillan, Pollock and Klusener gave India a platform from which they could control the Test match.He occupied the crease for over 9 hours. He also scored a quick 81 in the second innings to force a declaration.However, rain put paid to India’s hopes of winning their first ever Test match in South Africa as the match was drawn with India needing just two wickets.
177 in Ahmedabad and 144 in Kanpur Vs SriLanka, 2009
India were in trouble in the first Test of the series losing 4 wickets for 32 runs. A Dravid masterclass in terms of style and quality of strokes took India past 400. He backed it up with another century in the next Test as runs flowed from his bat after a rather long lean patch. It was his second wind and helped India to an innings and series win. These two innings displayed that he could score at fairly quick rate as well as his strike rates on both occasions was above 60. A combined total of 11 hours were spent in the middle.
136 at Mohali Vs England ,2008
A rather long lean patch brought in a lot of criticism and his place in the Test side was questioned.A poor series against Australia and no centuries for 11 Tests finally ended with a dogged century against England at Mohali. The tenacity in Rahul Dravid came to the fore as he bit and fought his way to a century against an impressive attack consisiting of Anderson, Broad, Flintoff and Swann. Almost 8 hours were spent at the wicket and went a long way in silencing his critics.
81 and 68 vs West Indies at Jamaica, 2006
A masterclass in batsmanship by the then captain,and with the series up for grabs, he played a lone hand in both innings and was one of only three batsmen to get a half century in the Test. India made a combined total of 371 runs in their two innings as Dravid alone accounted for 149 of those, on a minefield of a wicket. It helped India win a series in the Caribbean after 35 odd years. A combined total of 10 hours at the wicket yielded two of his most memorable innings, outside of his century innings.
115 at Trent Bridge and 148 at Headingley vs England 2002
In his prime, Rahul Dravid was unstoppable during this tour as he reeled off three centuries on the trot, including a double century at the Oval. However, his 115 at Trent Bridge helped India save the Test and stay in the series , an effort lasting 338 mins. The next one was even more remarkable as he negotiated a tricky first day under overcast skies to conjure up a century and set up an Indian win. He restricted his strokeplay and built a platform to help a middle order assualt by Tendulkar and Ganguly.
270 at Rawalpindi Vs Pakistan 2004
With the series tied at 1-1 each, Rahul Dravid batted for a mind boggling 740 minutes for his career best 270. This is his longest innings till date and was instrumental in setting up a series win in Pakistan after 20 odd years. It is rated as one of his best innings for the sheer duration of his innings and coming in an away Test match.
180 at Kolkata Vs Australia, 2001
This innings had to feature in the list as his partnership with VVS Laxman is part of cricketing folklore. India were following on and were 1-0 down in the series before Dravid and Laxman decided to alter the script. Laxman was elevated to the No 3 slot and Dravid was pushed down to No 6 for the second innings.. He batted for 446 mins and his partnership with Laxman was worth 376. India remarkably went on to win the match and the series.
233 and 72* at Adelaide Vs Australia ,2004
After being pounded by Ricky Ponting, India were wobbling at 85-4 chasing Australia’s 557. Dravid’s old mate VVS Laxman joined him in the middle and the two put on another 300 run partnership. His 233 in the first essay helped India to 523, while his 72* guided India to a tricky target of 233 in the fourth innings. A combined total of close to 14 hours at the crease brought India one of the most cherished wins in recent memory and established Dravid as a legend of the game.

Rahul Dravid: A champion match winner

9:24:00 PM RG87 No comments

Dibyasundar Nayak @ SportsKeeda

Another match India won after a classy innings by Rahul Dravid. A champion match winner whose batting career is full with instances of trials and tribulations, Rahul Dravid has carved his own name even if he had to bat in the same era which saw genius Sachin Tendulkar. Some even rate Rahul above Sachin when it comes to match winning capabilities. We won’t go into those comparison stuff. After 15 years of constant service, what matters is that Dravid is still playing, scoring runs, piling centuries and above all winning matches for India. A batsman who made batting an art, Rahul is still the idol of thousands of budding cricketers all over the country. The new age fast forward cricket fans may not prefer the arty batting which is Rahul’s forte, but the importance of his skills and abilities is noticed when he single handedly wins matches for the team like he did the other day in the test match against the west indies. Someone pointed it very correctly, “His superb innings at Sabina Park, Jamaica is the testimony to his batting genius. He unleashed a majestic innings of 112, when the next highest individual score was just 28.”

The batting department already depleted because of injury and rest of the experts, Rahul had to score well as well as steer the young batsmen along with him. He did that very well and helped the team to post enough on the board to win the match convincingly at the end. A batsman like him who always loves and enjoys challenges, this was nothing new. After all, he has been doing this for last 15 years of his life reminding everyone why he is called the ‘great wall of India’.

India’s most reliable batsman has covered a long path from a simple, young batsman in 1996 to a mature, solid batting mainstay of India in 2011. In the 15 year long career, he has captained the team India, has seen ups and downs of the team and has bettered his own game. Evolving his own style of playing with times has been the reason behind his successful career. Padma shri, Wisden player of the year, ICC player of the year and ICC Test player of the year, 3 man of the series and 11 man of the match in tests and 14 man of the matches in ODIs are a few awards that came during his career acknowledging his contributions to cricket. Dravid has more than 10000 runs in each format of the game.

A fascinating aspect of Dravid’s career has been his contributions to team’s victories. The list of Dravid’s 32 centuries show that whenever Rahul scored a century India either won or drew that match (except one match vs Zimbabwe back in 1998). No wonder West Indies captain Darren Sammy couldn’t sleep for one night after he dropped Dravid on 6 and Rahul capitalized on the chance to go on scoring a century in the last match in Jamaica.

Rahul Dravid’s 32 centuries

Score	Vs Country	Innings	Venue	Year	Result (for India)
148	South Africa	1^st	Johannesburg	1997	Draw
118	Zimbabwe	2^nd	Harare	1998	Loss
190	New Zealand	2^nd	Hamilton	1999	Draw
103*	New Zealand	4^th	Hamilton	1999	Draw
107	Sri Lanka	1^st	Colombo	1999	Draw
144	New Zealand	3^rd	Chandigarh	1999	Draw
200*	Zimbabwe	2^nd	Delhi	2000	Win
162	Zimbabwe	2^nd	Nagpur	2000	Win
180	Australia	3^rd	Kolkata	2001	Win
144*	West Indies	2^nd	Guyana	2002	Draw
115	England	3^rd	Nottingham	2002	Draw
148	England	1^st	Leeds	2002	Win
217	England	2^nd	London	2002	Draw
100*	West Indies	1^st	Bombay	2002	Win
222	New Zealand	1^st	Ahmadabad	2003	Draw
233	Australia	2^nd	Adelaide	2003	Win
270	Pakistan	2^nd	Rawalpindi	2004	Win
160	Bangladesh	1^st	Chittagong	2004	Win
110	Pakistan	1^st	Kolkata	2005	Win
135	Pakistan	3^rd	Kolkata	2005	Win
127	Pakistan	2^nd	Lahore	2006	Draw
103	Pakistan	2^nd	Faisalabad	2006	Draw
146	West Indies	1^st	St. Lucia	2006	Draw
129	Bangladesh	1^st	Mirpur	2007	Win
111	South Africa	2^nd	Chennai	2008	Draw
136	England	1^st	Chandigarh	2008	Draw
177	Sri Lanka	1^st	Ahmadabad	2009	Draw
144	Sri Lanka	1^st	Kanpur	2009	Win
111*	Bangladesh	2^nd	Dhaka	2010	Win
104	New Zealand	1^st	Ahmadabad	2010	Draw
191	New Zealand	2^nd	Nagpur	2010	Win
112	West Indies	3^rd	Jamaica	2011	Win

Soft spoken and a true gentleman, Rahul Dravid has always made India proud with not just on-field performances but off-field decent behavior. Being 38, he may not play more than one and a half year, but he will always remain a legend of the game of cricket. His name will always be regarded synonymous to batting techniques. His domination over the bowlers will always be remembered with a feeling of awe.

Dravid provides a fascinating glimpse into his batting methods

9:18:00 PM RG87 No comments

S. Dinakar for The Hindu
Raina, particularly in the second innings, handled the short-ball well

Rahul Dravid lives in the ‘present moment' at the crease but has this precious ability to look deep into a contest.

This insightful batsman breaks the innings into compartments, wear downs the attack in the most demanding of conditions. Dravid can visualise an innings mentally, move into what professional sportsmen call the ‘zone.'

During his outstanding innings of 112 at Sabina Park, the steely batsman provided us a fascinating glimpse into his methods.

On a surface of variable bounce, he played with the full face of the willow when the ball was on a good length or pitched up.

He collected runs between extra cover and ‘straightish' mid-wicket with push-drives rather than full-fledged drives. Only when the bowler erred in line did he venture into those wristy flicks.

Seizing scoring chances

And he was quick to seize in on the scoring opportunities with horizontal bat strokes when the delivery was lacking in length; an important element of batting on such tracks.

There were occasions when he shortened his back-lift; this was again in keeping with the nature of the pitch. The erudite Dravid is someone who is always willing to make subtle technical adjustments.

Dravid was short of runs going into the second Test against England at Mohali in 2008. This was a phase when he was a tad vulnerable outside the off-stump.

The thoughtful Dravid adopted a different, two-eyed stance in the Test. While an open stance can limit a batsman's driving off the front foot on the off-side, the two-eyed stance allows him to have a clear look at deliveries on or outside the off-stump.

Dravid made a determined 136 in the Indian first innings. Once he rediscovered his batting rhythm, he reverted to his classical side-on stance.

Raina impresses

Suresh Raina is deeply influenced by Dravid's batsmanship. The left-hander impressed with his solid, focused ways in the Test.

Raina, particularly in the second innings when Fidel Edwards and Ravi Rampaul bent their backs, handled the short-ball well. Importantly, he did not take his eye off the sphere.

The same cannot be said of Virat Kohli whose feet movement froze when Edwards pounded him with some vicious, lifting deliveries. Word travels quickly in cricketing circles and Kohli is bound to be targeted in the coming days. Test cricket is a different ball game.

Creditably for someone who made a huge jump from domestic cricket to facing a charged-up Edwards at Sabina Park, Abhinav Mukund was not found wanting.

Mukund unruffled

The left-hander was sure about his off-stump and appeared comfortable off the back-foot which is an essential attribute at this level. Mukund was unruffled by the short-pitched deliveries.

Another debutant, Praveen Kumar, was buzzing. He moved the new and the old ball either way with a wristy, whippy action that made it difficult for the batsmen to pick the delivery at the point of release.

Praveen opened up the right-handers with his out-swing and shifted his line admirably to the southpaws.

Actually, skipper Dhoni deserves credit for switching Praveen's ends — he was brought on from the Michael Holding end — that resulted in the medium-pacer sending down the game-opening spell on day two. Dhoni's move enabled Praveen to bowl against the breeze that enhanced his out-swing.

And Ishant Sharma operated with speed, bounce and intensity. The tall Ishant, with his hit-the-deck methods, and the much shorter Praveen, with his deceptive movement in the air, form an interesting combination.

Praveen, however, got into serious problems for running on to the danger area. Skipper Dhoni explained, “That's one of the problems when you graduate from 10-over-bowling (in the ODIs) to Tests where a bowler has to be a lot more careful about such things.”

Harbhajan batted with typical spunk but should have attempted to spin the ball into the right-hander from at least half a foot outside the off-stump. Leg-spinner Amit Mishra impressed only in patches.

Harper's goof-ups

Umpire Daryl Harper had an ordinary game and at least four decisions went against India. But then, BCCI's opposition to UDRS is not without logic.

The Hawk Eye has its limitations. And if the Hot Spot technology — which is at the heart of the UDRS — is not available for all series, then the system makes little sense. In a level-playing international field, you cannot have Hot Spot for a series in England or Australia and not have the same for the contests in the West Indies or Sri Lanka.

Never underestimate great sportsmen

9:10:00 PM RG87 No comments

Peter Roebuck for Hindu

Rahul Dravid has struck a mighty blow for the old-timers. His hundred in the Caribbean served two purposes, putting his team in a powerful position and reminding all and sundry that batsmen are better judged from their performances than from their birth certificates.

Apparently his place had been in jeopardy. All sorts of gilded youngsters had emerged in the recent T20 campaign. One or two of them had even passed 50 a couple of times. In some eyes the veteran had become surplus to requirements. Never mind that T20 is a trifling matter besides Test cricket.

Dravid responded by constructing a resourceful and decisive hundred. With every deft shot thrust and every crafty parry he confirmed that there is life in this aged canine.

Dravid looks fit

Significantly he has not put on any weight, looks as fit as the proverbial fiddle. Bulging bellies slow down the feet and brain, and suggest that motivation is lacking. Yuvraj's prospects can be gleaned from his girth.

Dravid's hundred told another tale. Never underestimate great sportsmen. No matter how polite they may appear, they are fuelled by desire, driven by pride and sustained by skill. Don't expect them to go quietly into the night.

Yet, supposed veterans are often treated like second hand cars, thrown away as soon as a bright new model appears on the scene. Never mind the quality, feel the sheen.

It's the same in tennis. During the week a splendid Japanese woman of some 40 summers was pitted against Venus Williams, the older of the distinguished sisters. It might have been expected that the contest be portrayed as a fascinating tussle between two sophisticated and accomplished players.

Not a bit of it — the papers described it as the Zimmer frame match! Happily the veterans produced a wonderful exhibition of tennis and held a huge crowd in thrall.

At least these wily professionals can determine their own fate, for their place in the rankings. Subjectivity does not imprison them.

Katich unlucky

Simon Katich has enjoyed no such luck. Australia ditched him not because he cannot score runs but because he is 35. Apparently his lawyers told him that he had a cast iron case for wrongful dismissal but he desisted. Instead he vowed to keep captaining his State.

Ordinarily the dumping of a middle-aged opener from a losing team would have been accepted. The ensuing rumpus confirmed that confidence in the selectors and administrators has collapsed. Nor did Katich spare them at his press conference.

Not that seasoned campaigners can be allowed to overstay their welcome. Sentiment has no place in top class sport. Sanath Jayasuriya's recall to the Sri Lankan ODI team ignored his long slump in form. All the evidence indicates that he is past it. At best his selection was a step back, at worst it told of political interference — the sturdy left-hander is an MP in the governing party.

In this case, Jayasuriya's critics may have served him better than his allies. Reputations are better protected by going a little too early not considerably too late. Unlike Dravid, his game depends on eye and reflex, and they can quickly deteriorate.

Certainly youth ought to be cherished. Nothing is more thrilling than to see a brilliant young player rise to challenge the old masters. Indeed sport depends on the emergence of newcomers capable of exciting a new generation of followers.

Rory McIlroy's stunning victory at the US Open heralded the arrival of a genuinely gifted golfer. Just that it's not sensible to go gaga every time a gifted youngster impresses or glum every time an old timer has a bad spell.

But for Rahul Dravid, India could've been humiliated

9:08:00 PM RG87 No comments

Pradeep Magazine for HT
It is an age-old predicament every sportsman confronts in the twilight of his career. When does he choose the moment to give up his most cherished possession, something he has lived for and enjoyed doing the most? The greater the excellence achieved, the harder it is to give it up, to wake up one

day and convince oneself that "Enough, my mind and body need rest". You have to be a super achiever, a perfectionist to be given time and space to make your own judgment on when you feel your body and mind are not in sync and instead of chasing shadows, it is best to step aside.
All this is easier said than followed. For, who is to decide when the loss of form is permanent and not an aberration very common to sport. The older one grows, each failure gets magnified and questions are raised on ones ability to turn the clock back.
All these questions came to my mind while watching Rahul Dravid play an innings of great solidity and impregnable defence in adverse batting conditions.
Here was a man whose past year or so had passed in struggling to put up decent scores while appearing vulnerable against the bouncing, moving ball. His invaluable assets - focus and concentration - had deserted him and he appeared to be living on borrowed time.
High standards
I had a brief conversation with him after he returned from South Africa.
No, he was not thinking of retirement. He did not think he batted all that badly and was unlucky to get out to some very good balls. But that was not bothering him as much as the fact that he had to live up to the high standards of excellence he had set for himself.
And the obvious question whose answer lay within him was would he be able to play like he has done for most of his distinguished career?
Like all outstanding sportsmen, targets must have been set, and it is likely he would have told himself, "let me see how it goes', especially in England where he would be tested to the limit against the moving ball.
Like a seasoned pro
On the Sabina Park wicket, where the ball moved, bounced and spun treacherously, Dravid played like a seasoned pro who was loving every challenge thrown at him. Every other batsman on that wicket appeared clueless and uncertain of what lay next, except for the leaner, fitter Dravid.
He tackled the bouncing ball with soft wrists, ducked away when needed with ease, but cut and drove whenever given the opportunity with the assurance of a man on the top of his craft. India would have been embarrassed by this lowly-rated West Indian team but for Dravid's contribution.
Weak bench
It is obvious from what one has seen so far in this series that India's second line, the so-called bench strength, is not as strong as we would like to believe. Hence, the form of men like Dravid assumes even more significance if India have to protect their status as the best team in the world this year.

In Praise of Rahul Dravid

9:02:00 PM RG87 No comments

Written by: Will Davies
Original Article Link Here
Rahul Dravid once again proved his worth for Indian cricket this week, scoring a remarkable 32^nd Test century for his country as many of his teammates floundered in the first of a three-match series in the Caribbean.
India beat the West Indies by 63 runs at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica. It was a relatively comfortable victory courtesy of Dravid’s second-innings score of 112. India’s next top scorer in that innings was No.10 Amit Mishra, hardly in the team for his batting, who notched up 28 runs as the team stuttered to a total of 252.
Dravid celebrated his century the way he has gone about his 15-year career – in an understated, calm manner. The single he scored to bring up his 100 was ungainly, but it was enough and prompted his teammates in the pavilion to uniformly rise to applaud and show their respect for the 38-year old as he saluted them with his bat.

Dravid, known by fans as “The Wall,” is almost a dying breed in the modern world of cricket. As the sport becomes increasingly commercialized along with the irrepressible rush of shorter formats, in particular the Twenty20 Indian Premier League, the unassuming Dravid is most comfortable during Test matches, cutting a dash out on the wicket.
While other players have invented a whole new armoury of shots, like Virender Sehwag’s “Upar Cut” and Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s “Helicopter”, Dravid has followed a more patient, classical and elegant approach. He may have missed the cut for India’s World Cup-winning squad, but he still had the skills to court a buyer for the 2011 IPL, when he played for the Rajasthan Royals.
Test cricket is Dravid’s home though and he has excelled there, as his 32 centuries and 12,215 career runs prove. His performance this week in Jamaica helped him return to the top 20 in the Reliance International Cricket Council player rankings for Test batsmen.
In a statement Friday, the ICC said Dravid – who won the ICC Cricketer and Test Player of the Year awards in 2004 – had climbed nine places up the Test batting rankings to 20^th position, his best spot since November 2010.
South Africa’s Jacques Kallis, another elder statesman of the sport, is the top-ranked Test batsman and Sachin Tendulkar is in second place.
Tendulkar will go down in history as India’s best player. Dravid doesn’t quite occupy the same stratosphere as the Little Master, but he certainly deserves to be recognized as one of the best batsmen India has ever produced.

Dravid: Give youngsters time

8:59:00 PM RG87 No comments

Original News Link
Veteran Rahul Dravid has come out in support of the young India batsmen who failed to live up the hype in India's 63-run win in the first Test against the West Indies.
Rahul Dravid's 112 in the second innings proved to be the platform for India's win but the youngsters, drafted in place of Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar and Yuvraj Singh, failed to make their mark.
Dravid, however, said the youngsters need to be backed and given time to prove themselves.
India's middle order has been well served by Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, but vacancies are going to open up sooner than later.
Dravid said youngsters look even better than the famous quartet in talent.
"We all needed time - we have been around for 15 years since we were given a bit of time and you can't expect performances straight away," Dravid said.
"To be fair to these guys, they have been performing brilliantly in ODIs and I believe Indian cricket is in good hands and these youngsters are going to perform much better than we did even."
India ended up with a comfortable win but there were moments in the match when India looked own and out and Dravid admitted the team will have to play much better in the coming days.
"We know we need to do better than we did in this Test. If we are honest we know there are areas we need to improve on, and hopefully we will get that right in Barbados. It has not been easy: a lot of guys have come off a flight two-three days before the Test and there's been no practice game. Hopefully this win is a good lead-up, and the guys will do better in the next game."

Rahul Dravid moves to top-20 Test Rankings

8:58:00 PM RG87 No comments

However, star batsman Rahul Dravid jumped nine places to return to the top 20 after his man-of-the-match performance in the first Test against West Indies at Kingston, Jamaica.
Dravid earned 45 rating points after scoring a match-saving innings of 112 in India's second innings.

Full Article

One and One Eleven: Defeating the Loss

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In Test cricket, we attribute a loss to 10 batsmen getting out twice, or getting out once at least in the 2^nd innings of the game, while a win depends on a certain factors. So in simple terms, except the rare cases, a team can avoid defeat if the 10 pins don't fall (especially while fielding first – includes follow on). We have 11 batsmen in each team, so if we attribute equal percentage (figuratively as even the tail-enders have sometimes saved games), we come to a conclusion that each batsman holds 9% share in between losing and saving.

In 2001, Kolkata Test, an old saying turned true, which says 'ek aur ek gyarah', meaning one and one eleven or 1+1=11. As per the calculations, it was 9% share between saving and losing per batsman. Exactly 2 batsmen fought tooth and nail to try and save their 9%. It was only VVS in the 1^st innings, but in the 2^nd innings, Very Very Special – Wall partnership combined their 9 and 9 to make 99 and virtually saved the game, given mathematically 99 is nearly equal to 100. Including the matters of mind, heart, and confidence, the boost was clear enough that nobody could make 9 and 9 99 in the Australian innings.

Who says it's only a saying? Nine and nine is ninety-nine. One and one is eleven. And many such combinations.