[issigonis]

>>>

Adieu. Very well played.

Great players become great not only because of the way they play but also the way they think and behave off it. I think Dravid took his own decision, regardless of what the press or fans said. The sensitive also know when to bow out gracefully. As Vijay Merchant once said - when you go, people should say why and not why not? or words to that effect. Dravid being a sensible man decided when it was time to go.

All teams pass through phases of transformation and the established and the old have to give way to the new, the young and the exuberant. That is life.

It is time for India's cricket team to look beyond the greats of the nineties and possibly the oughties as well (Sachin, Dravid, Laxman, Harbhajan, Sehwag) much as we admire them passionately. Kumble and Ganguly from that team are long gone, bowing out due to waning performances.

We need to select the best test team, regardless of age and experience but based on the best performing. It is difficult to accomplish this, but it has to be done.

Every era comes to an end and a new era begins. Australia which has a better cricket infrastructure by way of policies, governance and a physical set up, also struggled a bit with the passing away of their modern greats ( Steve Waugh, Shane Warne, Glen McGrath, Matthew Hayden, Damien Martyn and Adam Gilchrist) but quickly reclaimed their status as a powerful test side with the induction of some very fine young bowlers and a few batsmen. The present side may not be as good as the side of say five years ago, but they might get there, who can tell. Importantly all those players made their own decisions by and large and bowed out accordingly.

I look forward to the Virat Kohlis, Ajinkya Rahanes, Cheteshwar Pujaras, the Umesh Yadavs and the R Ashwins to step in and start performing, in due course.

Farewell Rahul Dravid. Well played.

Regards

[msdivy]

Originally Posted by issigonis

As Vijay Merchant once said - when you go, people should say why and not why not?

Rahul Dravid has retired from Tests when people are asking why. Rahul is a quiet guy. Good that this news was made public & got good coverage. Earlier he had quit from ODI & T20s but even the selectors didn't knew and they had selected him of ODI !

Rahul Dravid is one of the rare Indian Test batsmen who made runs on all grounds against all countries.

PS: He is still RR captain in IPL. People will get to see him bat again in April.

[ampere]

This is what defines the man:

To Quote Sambit Pal:

When we spoke a couple of weeks ago, I asked if he regretted not having retired in England.
His response was a further revelation of character. He would certainly have retired if he hadn't
had a good series, he said, but after doing so well, retiring would have been selfish.
There was a series to be won in Australia, and he owed it to the team to make the trip.

And no, there were no regrets. He would do it no other way, even if offered a second chance.

Full Article:
Sambit Bal: Rahul Dravid, your regular, everyday superstar | Opinion | Cricinfo Magazine | ESPN Cricinfo

[drmohitg]

Rahul Dravid will always stay as the best no. 3 batsman I have ever seen. I feel only lucky to have seen him in action right from his debut. I am sad that he was in the end forced to quit although I still feel he has some more cricket left in him.

[Coolman]

Friends,

To me, "Rahul Dravid is to Indian cricket what Maruti 800 has been to the Indians".

Thanks,
C_

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by msdivy

Rahul Dravid is one of the rare Indian Test batsmen who made runs on all grounds against all countries.

He is the only one to have scored a century against all Test-playing nations in every Test-playing nation, right?

[shankar.balan]

A real gentleman Rahul Dravid!

Why cant the other cricketers behave with the same level of dignity and retire decently when they reach the "sell by" date?

People like Sachin and Sehwag and all those chappies could very well shut shop now that they've made stacks of money (and runs) and allow some other younger, capable blokes to get in and make a difference to the team.

Else the younger guys also will get old watching these oldies and hence may never get a chance to play for India and make that vital difference! I think cricketers also require a mandatory retirement age since none of the others appear to be very "gentlemanly" about it like Rahul Dravid is!

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

He is the only one to have scored a century against all Test-playing nations in every Test-playing nation, right?

I think you intend to say that he scored a century each at home and away against each Test playing nation (that he played against)

I dont think he is the only one. There were several other that have not played against a country or two. And probably there is someone who has scored a century against all 9 other opponents home and away. If I remember, there was an article on Cricinfo about this sometime ago. Though I cannot confirm that now!

Solid effort nevertheless

[issigonis]

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

A real gentleman Rahul Dravid!

Why cant the other cricketers behave with the same level of dignity and retire decently when they reach the "sell by" date?

People like Sachin and Sehwag and all those chappies could very well shut shop now that they've made stacks of money (and runs) and allow some other younger, capable blokes to get in and make a difference to the team.

Else the younger guys also will get old watching these oldies and hence may never get a chance to play for India and make that vital difference! I think cricketers also require a mandatory retirement age since none of the others appear to be very "gentlemanly" about it like Rahul Dravid is!

>>>

Bluntly said, which I was trying to say obliquely above. The point is, and I remember Tiger saying this - that the best team should be selected, regardless of age-experience. So if a player is old but is the best in a certain position, keep him; likewise if there is a greenhorn who is the best, blood him by all means.

I am looking at the following line up (hopefully) for tests soon : Gambhir, Rahane, Kohli, Pujara, Sharma, Yuvraj/Raina, Saha as the first seven. If we can unearth a new Sachin or a Laxman or a Kohli, so much the better.

Regards

[Jignesh]

Thank you Rahul Dravid.

You will always be our role model for Hard Work, Dedication, Never Give up Attitude & Integrity. You held the spirit of the game very high & it was always pleasure watching you out in the line of fire.

You are one of the rare players who have adjusted everytime the team required you to do so.

Thanks,

[srishiva]

I was looking for some articles to reflect on Dravid's achievements. As usual, the Indian media is pathetic.
Headed to BBC and it warms up your heart reading about Dravid

[HellwratH]

So long, Rahul Dravid and thank you. You were always the Mr.Dependable for our Indian team and you'll be missed.

Originally Posted by srishiva

I was looking for some articles to reflect on Dravid's achievements. As usual, the Indian media is pathetic.
Headed to BBC and it warms up your heart reading about Dravid

Not sure which Indian media you follow, but I liked Ayaz Memon's piece a lot. It was straight from the heart:
After Dravid, Indian cricket won’t be the same again | Firstpost

"Ra Tujhe Salaam" by Amul:

[venks]

Legend of Indian cricket hangs his boots, I am sure it will be long until we see a player close to his stature. Well done "The Wall"

Cheers...venks

[bala80]

One person whom I really admired, a perfect gentleman. Though he didnt captain the side for long time, I thought he was the best person to captain the team. A selfless individual, respect to the man.

I still remember the placard during the recent england series that read - 11 english players against 1 Indian - the wall, Fitting tribute. India was lucky to have a batsman of the caliber of Dravid.

[watfor]

I started following Dravid's career from his Ranji days. One just had the gut feeling that he would play for India some day. I remember my disappointment when he was not picked for the 1996 world cup. Picked for the England tour following the world cup, he lived up to his expectations. The 95 followed by another 84 was a good start.
I remember being disappointed when his ODI career did not take off that well, on one occasion he was sent out to bat at number 8 in Sharjah. He came good when the conditions were tougher, his innings against SA in Durban and the six against a fire-breathing Donald stood out.

Captaincy was probably not his forte, he was heavily critisized for declaring when a batsman was about to reach his double hundred. A first round knock-out in the 2007 WC did not help things. The journey from 9000 to 10000 runs was a struggle by his standards and he was the first one to admit that the final 1000 runs were the toughest when he got to the 10k run mark in Tests.

A great player, the title of his biography could not have been more apt, "The nice guy who finished first first"

p.s: Just when I thought there's no reason to watch the IPL, the thought that I will never get to see him bat again, would make me watch it. It will be interesting to see how the Bengaluru crowd greets him for his game in KSCA.