Rahul Dravid - 3 shots.

A Sachin Tendulkar fan asked me to describe 3 shots of Rahul Dravid in a manner convincing enough to make me his fan. I tried my best.

The Front Foot Defence

We have an imposing 42 runs to chase down in 10 overs. I am coming in after the first wicket fell for 4 runs. The bowler is throwing in good length deliveries at pace. I have made up my mind. I muster a bit of footwork to defend the ball on front foot, deadbatting the ball to the ground. The bowler shakes his head and my teammates yell — “5 more balls before you are retired hurt”. It doesn’t bother me. One good chance to play like Rahul Dravid facing up to Shoaib Akthar’s brute pace and I will take it happily.

A modest batsman with a stylish technique and workman like ethic, Dravid checked all the boxes for a person I wanted to be. Not everyone can be Tendulkar. But, one can put in the hard yards so that when the sun finally set, one will be mentioned in the same breath as the best.

The Square Drive

It is a hot Thursday afternoon. A sense of weariness has already set in at the thought of marching for a few hours under the searing sun. But, before that I take a moment to read the papers. The front page has a picture of Rahul Dravid playing a square drive. The cameras doing their work from the deep backward point have captured this perfect moment. I can see the scenario unfold in my head:

The bowler runs in and delivers a near perfect delivery on a green mat, full length with a goal to get the batsmen driving and have him caught at slips. But, this is Dravid at his bloody best. He has just gotten down on his knees and dispatched the ball beyond the diving backward point fielder. The fielder at gully chases the ball to vain. I can imagine the ball boy smile as he throws the ball back to the fielder from the boundary.

It also brings a smile on my face. The joy of little things — Dravid’s Square Drive.

The Cover Drive

I was watching Shantanu Moitra(musician) and Harsha Bhogle chat today and discuss how cricket commentary is like poetry. And, I couldn’t agree more. If Wordsworth had the Solitary Reaper reaping and singing to herself. Then we have Dravid’s cover drive to work with. Hands, feet and head all working in perfect harmony and meeting the ball in the sweet spot to find the gap between the cover and extra cover. Dravid holds his shape for a second and I have held on to that imagery forever. Just like Wordsworth,

The music in my heart I bore,
Long after it was heard no more.