Dravid learns lessons from Sachin

Sachin Tendulkar has been an inspiration to a whole generation of cricketers. His batting in itself is a coaching manual. This is clearly reflected in his envious cache of batting records.

On Tuesday, at the Sardar Patel Stadium at Motera near here, the Little Genius was seen in a new role. He became a source of inspiration to none other than former India skipper Rahul Dravid.

The 37-year-old Bangalorean, who has been the mainstay of India’s batting over the years, appears to have lost his Midas touch of late. Age could be a factor as Dravid’s reflexes and feet movement are not the same.

With the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara and Suresh Raina staking their claim for a spot in the Test XI, Dravid did himself no favour with scores like 77, 13, 1, 21* in the four innings against Australia last month.

Dravid is one of the most technically sound batsmen the modern era has seen, but on Tuesday, he did falter at the nets. ‘The Wall’ missed the line of the ball completely on a couple of occasions. Dravid appeared like he was struggling to negotiate the left-arm spin of Pragyan Ojha.

Seemingly upset with his misses, Dravid stood and watched Tendulkar bat. For the record, The maestro was rock-solid as ever.

Ojha, Amit Mishra, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma and even coach Gary Kirsten tried their best, but Tendulkar showed no signs of ageing and played some delightful strokes.

http://www.dnaindia.com/sport/report_rahul-dravid-learns-lessons-from-the-master-sachin-tendulkar_1461452

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Dravid may be a part of KSCA administration

Three of Karnataka's greatest ever cricketers - Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad - will contest elections to the state cricket association (KSCA) on November 21. A fourth, Rahul Dravid, will not contest but has indicated to his former team-mates that, if they win, he will be part of the administration in some capacity.

"We are all in this together," Prasad told ESPNcricinfo.

Kumble, Srinath and Prasad have all held administrative posts with the BCCI and the ICC. Kumble was named the chairman of the National Cricket Academy in September, while Srinath has been an ICC match referee for the past few years. Prasad, currently the bowling coach with Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, has coached the India Under-17 team and the Karnataka Ranji team and was the bowling coach of the national side for two years. He wa sreported last week to have accepted an assignment with the Asian Cricket Council to promote the game and groom talent in the non-cricketing parts of the continent.

Their entry marks the exit of an earlier generation of cricketers from the KSCA , led by its current secretary Brijesh Patel and including GR Viswanath, Syed Kirmani and Roger Binny. "With the changing times I'm of the belief that fresh energy, new ideas and young feet are always good for an institution," Patel said in a statement released on Tuesday. "We are lucky that we have Kumble, Dravid, Srinath and others willing to sacrifice their time and energy to take Karnataka cricket forward."

Patel and his generation of players came into administration in 1998, and he's been secretary since then.

"I've seen these cricketers closely and I've immense faith and utmost confidence in their ability and commitments to make KSCA a model association," he said. "My team and I have decided to extent unstinted support to this cause. I also appeal to all members of the KSCA to support this young team.

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Rahul Dravid –The Selfless Man Who Goes Unnoticed!

Taken from Abhinav Blog

This piece is not about his runs, his centuries or his partnership – we have millions of articles dedicated on this facet. So let us move above all this! This article is about Rahul – the generous soul whose attitude makes him stand tall above others, this article is about RAHUL SHARAD DRAVID!

Rahul Dravid, the Wall of Indian Cricket team for decades is one man who hates to see a fall!

Every single time, this man has risen out of ashes, just like a phoenix and went on to create histories after histories. This selfless man sees the benefit of his team before seeing his advantages. Rather, there is no such word like “personal benefit” in his own dictionary. He may not be a Tendulkar, who is applauded as GOD in the history of world cricket, but what is his fault that he was born in his era? Rahul is the only batsman who has scored more than 10,000 runs in both the formats after Sachin Tendulkar! But this is also true that there cannot be two gods at one time. So, this selfless creature has been given the status of “The Wall” and “Mr. Dependable” and has been kept behind curtains since ages!

Many emerging cricketers can only dream of what Rahul has done for the Indian cricket – fighting so many battles and bringing glory to his country! With his warrior like attitude and amazing approach to the game, he has and will become one of the greatest icons of the world cricket. But if you are one of his CRITICS, this piece of writing would hold no relevance to you and you would keep on ignoring his contributions one after another! You will find fault in his innings where he managed to score just 15 or 20 runs and would babble about his failure to score a century just like a Sachin or a Sehwag, who managed to make centuries in the same match. But what about the matches where his sweat spoke for his achievements?

These critics would not utter a single word in his praise when this icon makes a double century or pour his heart out in saving a match on any given day! But these are CRITICS for you! You can’t help but to ignore them!

I know he does not have centuries like Tendulkar, killer-instinct like Ganguly, or strike rate like that of Sehwag, but one thing which makes him superior over others is his selfless, generous and unselfish approach towards his love for this game!

And this facet is enough to shut the mouths of all those critics who babble about this icon.
In this team, where we have all the politics running in the veins, players fighting to get slots, planning conspiracies for acquiring the position of a captain, we have one such player who thinks above all these aspects – he is Rahul Dravid!

Somewhere in all these years, Rahul never got his due as a player! But can we question about his adherence and devotion for his team. Has he ever refused to bat at any position, which was allotted to him? Has he ever denied keeping wickets at the time when he was struggling with bat? He managed to handle both the responsibilities at the same time, just because Indian team needed to accommodate the position of one extra batsman in the team!

Here is what legendary spin bowler Shane Warne wrote in his anecdote:..

“The fortress could also describe Rahul. Because once, Dravid was set, you needed the bowling equivalent of a dozen cannon firing all at once to blast him down.”...

But this is Rahul Dravid for you! Lack of acknowledgement never de-motivated him! He has still maintained that selfless approach towards life and his love – Cricket!


No matter the selectors pick him or drop him, he will continue making contributions in the Indian cricket with his selfless, yet (intentionally) unnoticed efforts!

Written By Abhinav
Source

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Dravid panicked in the IPL final: Gibbs

JOHANNESBURG: Rahul Dravid had clicked the panic button during the final of the IPL season 2 between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Deccan Chargers, disclosed Herschelle Gibbs in his autobiography, 'To the Point'.

"He tried to play a little paddle against Harmeet Singh and got bowled. In a normal game he would never have tried that shot at that time. There was panic written all over it," Gibbs wrote about Dravid in the book that was released on Monday.

"I mean, here was a guy who had played in numerous high-pressure games. He was usually as unflappable as one got, but in this final, at a crucial time for the Royal Challengers, he played a ridiculous shot to get out," he added.

"Playing for the Deccan Chargers against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2009 IPL final was one game that proved just how unpredictable finals can be. This is where you find out which guys can or can't handle the pressure. And that pressure sometimes makes you do silly things."

Writing about the Chargers' IPL campaign in 2009, Gibbs said he was surprised by the team's triumph.

"To be honest, I still don't know how we, the Deccan Chargers, won the damn thing in 2009," Gibbs wrote in the book.

"As you know, the series was moved to South Africa for safety reasons, and our opening game was against the Kolkota Knight Riders. I think that game set the tone for us," Gibbs wrote.

Source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

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I shouldn't be compared with Dravid: Pujara

NEW DELHI: Cheteshwar Pujara is distinctly uncomfortable when compared to Rahul Dravid and the Saurashtra run-machine says he is not in a hurry to realise his childhood dream of making it to the national team.

Pujara's perfect temperament, classic technique and penchant for marathon knocks drew parallel with Dravid but the 21-year old batsman insists it's way too premature.

"I don't think I should be compared with Dravid who has so much of international experience under him, while I am yet to play international cricket," a coy Pujara said.

Despite his loads of runs in domestic cricket, Pujara's wait for India cap has not materialised yet but the youngster said he was not losing patience.

"I don't know what people say. My job is to score runs and I give my best whether playing for my club or state. I know selectors are watching if I am scoring runs," he said.

"Like every other cricketer, I also think of playing for India. If I am good enough, my time will come," he said, with confidence.

Back in business after a freak injury during a practice match before the second Indian Premier League kept him out of the action since April and he slammed a double century in his comeback match which has done a world of good to his confidence.

"I just did nets before playing the match. It was a little difficult when I started batting. I was very anxious to score my first runs, I was very conscious about my batting. It was really tough as after the operation, I did not play any club or practice matches.

"But after spending 15-20 minutes at the crease, I could push myself. I was able to bat the way I did last season, though it was a difficult physically. After getting the rhythm, it was easy scoring. The double gave me immense confidence," Pujara said.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/cricket/domestic-cricket/ranji-trophy/I-shouldnt-be-compared-with-Dravid-Pujara/articleshow/5314513.cms

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