As Rahul Dravid’s India colleagues spoke glowingly of what he meant to
them, the man himself seemed unmoved. And then, finally, it was his turn
to speak. He started with an honest confession that was quite un-like
Dravid. “I’d made a pact with myself that I won’t cry in any of the
functions on my retirement. It’s been tested to the limit today,” he
said.
He admitted that his “farewell to cricket” had started to sink in gradually. It’s been three weeks since he called it quits. It’s given him the space to reflect why he fell in love with the sport. “I was like any other fan, obsessed…” he said at a felicitation function organised by the Indian cricket board in Mumbai.
What did playing for India mean to him? As a 16-year-old, he would stay glued to the radio, listening to the exploits of Sunil Gavaskar and Gundappa Viswanath. He wanted to be like them, Dravid reminisced.
Cricket, he said in gratitude, gave him the chance to travel and experience great venues that he had only heard of as a 16-year-old.
His career, he believes, is a culmination of the efforts of many people.
When it was time to thank them all, he didn’t start with his colleagues. First, he singled out groundsmen, scorers and umpires for particular mention — the “people who do selfless jobs”. For him, the ‘selfless’ tribe also includes cricketers who may not have had great careers but played with the intention of winning.
He had special words for his longtime India colleague, Anil Kumble. “I’ll miss your intensity and desire. What I will not miss, though, is your vegetarian meals without mushroom, onion and garlic,” said Dravid who had taken 55 catches off the leg-spinner’s bowling.
To Laxman he thanked, not just for Kolkata 2001, but all the moments at slip when the two discussed “why architects and contractors weren’t doing well”.
The best tribute probably came from MS Dhoni who lauded his skills with the gloves. “Even a regular ’keeper would have struggled to take the catches,” the Indian captain said, recalling his initial days in the national team.
Dhoni revealed he was so much in awe of Dravid that he would be reluctant to chat. “But I never called him Dravid bhai or sir, I would always call him Jam,” Dhoni confessed.
Dravid, Dhoni said, was quite unlike this-generation cricketer, willing to channel his aggression differently even when provoked.
His former captain Sourav Ganguly reminisced the first time he shared the dressing room with Dravid. He relived a tour of England during their U-15 days, under coach Kailash Gattani, when it was obvious enough that Dravid he was marked for great deeds.
He admitted that his “farewell to cricket” had started to sink in gradually. It’s been three weeks since he called it quits. It’s given him the space to reflect why he fell in love with the sport. “I was like any other fan, obsessed…” he said at a felicitation function organised by the Indian cricket board in Mumbai.
What did playing for India mean to him? As a 16-year-old, he would stay glued to the radio, listening to the exploits of Sunil Gavaskar and Gundappa Viswanath. He wanted to be like them, Dravid reminisced.
Cricket, he said in gratitude, gave him the chance to travel and experience great venues that he had only heard of as a 16-year-old.
His career, he believes, is a culmination of the efforts of many people.
When it was time to thank them all, he didn’t start with his colleagues. First, he singled out groundsmen, scorers and umpires for particular mention — the “people who do selfless jobs”. For him, the ‘selfless’ tribe also includes cricketers who may not have had great careers but played with the intention of winning.
He had special words for his longtime India colleague, Anil Kumble. “I’ll miss your intensity and desire. What I will not miss, though, is your vegetarian meals without mushroom, onion and garlic,” said Dravid who had taken 55 catches off the leg-spinner’s bowling.
To Laxman he thanked, not just for Kolkata 2001, but all the moments at slip when the two discussed “why architects and contractors weren’t doing well”.
The best tribute probably came from MS Dhoni who lauded his skills with the gloves. “Even a regular ’keeper would have struggled to take the catches,” the Indian captain said, recalling his initial days in the national team.
Dhoni revealed he was so much in awe of Dravid that he would be reluctant to chat. “But I never called him Dravid bhai or sir, I would always call him Jam,” Dhoni confessed.
Dravid, Dhoni said, was quite unlike this-generation cricketer, willing to channel his aggression differently even when provoked.
His former captain Sourav Ganguly reminisced the first time he shared the dressing room with Dravid. He relived a tour of England during their U-15 days, under coach Kailash Gattani, when it was obvious enough that Dravid he was marked for great deeds.
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