- Cricket connoisseurs and die-hard fans would vouch if there was any cricketer who was not only humble, gentle, and pleasant without any airs of authority, arrogance, and haughtiness, it is none other than Rahul Dravid. Dravid’s genial disposition on and off the cricketing field is well-acknowledged and appreciated not only by the cricketing fraternity but also by everybody concerned with the game in whatever form. Mind you, Dravid was one of the fabulous cricketers alongside Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, and VVS Laxman when the Indian cricket team truly established itself on the cricketing horizon. These cricketers took Indian cricket to great levels with consistent performances around the world.
PC: MSN
- Not for nothing the moniker of The Wall sits so comfortably on Dravid for shouldering the Indian batting with great aplomb. Yes, the Indian team was endowed with superlatively flamboyant cricketers like Sachin and Sehwag alongside the stylists Ganguly and Laxman. But it was always Dravid’s wicket that was the prized one since his impeccable holding of one end ensured the other batsmen were allowed to play their natural game. If not at par with the peerless Sachin, Dravid stands right next to him in contributions in pushing the cause of the team on numerous occasions. His impressive statistics speak volumes about the way he contributed immensely to shaping up Team India for a decade and a half.
- Of course, he has proved himself as a successful coach cum mentor as well. The icing on the cake of his coaching career was Team India’s crowning as champions in the recently concluded T20 World Cup jointly organized by the USA and the Caribbean Islands. Now the encomiums being showered on Team India for snatching a victory from the jaws of defeat against South Africa in the finals is truly deserving. However, the credit for shaping up the team as world champions equally should accrue to head coach Rahul Dravid for ensuring the bunch delivers after coming so near several times in lifting the ICC organized events. Little wonder that Team India’s victory has opened a flood of euphoric celebratory occurrences around the country.
PC: Pragativadi
- The BCCI announced prize money of Rs 125 crore to be equally distributed among the players and support staff. The distribution was demarcated for the players and support coach. Rs 5 crore to players and head coach and Rs 2.5 crore to other coaching staff. As is his wont, Rahul Dravid gently refused to take the Rs 5 crore booty by stating that he be paid the same Rs 2.5 crore along with other coaching staff. This amply mirrors how Dravid the gentleman is endowed with a sense of morality, equanimity, and parity while refusing the prize money. This gesture not only garnered wide appreciation from all corners, further enhancing the already shining reputation of Dravid but also cemented his deep sense of parity/fraternity towards fellow support staff. Kudos Dravid!
