A Paean to Rahul Dravid

Nidhu Bhusan Das :

He is unlike others in the game – the unique Rahul Dravid, silent, determined, and a man with sense of proportion. He has all the rare qualities of head and heart. He has shown the world where to end a journey although he might have in the realms of thought reverberation of the Whitmanian refrain: ‘I have miles to go before I sleep.’
Rahul bade adieu to cricket while in form after 16 years in international turf, as did the soccer wizard Pele. At 39, Rahul is a wise man. He is driven by the call of heart and mind, not by commercial calculations though he has a degree in commerce from St. Joseph’s College of Commerce, Bangalore. In his valedictory statement he says: ‘… it wasn’t a difficult decision for me (to retire) because I just knew in my heart that the time was right, and I was very happy and comfortable in what I had achieved and what I had done.’ It is a sincere outpouring of a man who has admirers but not slogan chanting fans demanding of the cricket administration the space for their hero to perpetuate his career. He had no drummers to drum up his achievements. He stepped down as Captain of India on his own when he found that the job of the skipper was costly for him as a batsman.
He ends the statement thus: ‘My approach to cricket has been reasonably simple: it was about upholding the spirit of the game. I hope I have done some of that. I have failed at times, but I have never stopped trying. It is why I leave with sadness but also with pride.’ This is where lies the humility of a man who could walk out of the game with the head held high. He has the reason to be proud. However, he has never had the air of vanity. He has all the qualities of a gentleman, and the best of them may be his being self-effacing even after scoring a double century or steering the team to victory out of a possible debacle. So, when he would be on the crease or on the outfield he had the ‘reassuring presence’ for India. Anil Kumble, another gentleman cricketer of the past .called Dravid one of Karnataka’s ‘finest cricketing sons’ while BCCI president N. Srinivasan dubbed him as an ‘irreplaceable’ cricketer. This is a great tribute to Dravid who has been popular as ‘The Wall of Indian cricket’.
The second highest scorer in the history of Test Cricket, Dravid could be the last of India’s classical Test batsman. He successfully straddled the old school in the new age.
In sports statistics plays a role in determining success of a player. But it is not all. Only statistics cannot assess the greatness of Pele, Mohammad Ali Clay, Bjorn Borg et al. Sportsmanship is also very important.Dravid displayed that both on-field and off-field. He represents the southern sense of humility and personality that makes a great hero, erect, determined, and contented sans vanity. An innate sense of style and self-confidence go hand in hand to make his personality.