Rahul Dravid was the epitome of a craftsman. Never the most talented stroke player, he more than made up for it with an impenetrable defence allied with a high percentage, beautifully controlled range of strokes and backed up by mental stamina of the highest order. Opposing teams considered his wicket to be the most important in the Indian team. Considering the names in the Indian batting order, this was the ultimate compliment from his peers. It was almost inevitable that Rahul Dravid would be given the nickname, “The Wall”.
Dravid had a brilliant 2011, scoring four hundreds in his seven Tests, the only batsman to withstand the scrutiny of England’s rampaging pacemen. He had changed his mental tactics. Before he used to concentrate from the moment he stepped onto the field till the time he was dismissed. He changed that by concentrating only when the ball was being bowled and relaxing in between. It seemed to work for him. It was also obvious that the soundness of his technique was compensating for any loss of hand-eye speed.
But it all came apart on the Australian tour. Perhaps it was the canny Craig McDermott who found a crack in Dravid’s wall, but the Australian pacers widened the breach and the balls started smashing into the stumps with alarming frequency. It was no coincidence that the Indian batting folded like a house of cards. The fulcrum was gone.
Rahul Dravid made tons of runs and oodles of hundreds, but he will be remembered most for his modesty, team spirit and a dry sense of humour. Dravid’s shoes will be extremely hard to fill.
Cricketers like him come once in a generation and there is none visible on the horizon. Virat Kohli is the real thing, but he is more in the role of a Tendulkar. Suresh Raina is suspect against the rising delivery. Ironically, the one player who reminds of Dravid is the Pakistani Azhar Ali, although he has miles yet to go.
Good luck, Dav
Dav Whatmore has taken over as coach of the Pakistani cricketers. He is a tough no nonsense man who has had some success, particularly in Sri Lanka a few years ago. Whatmore played a few Tests for Australia and should command respect from the players because of that. The fact that he is a proven commodity in his field will add to that.
Whatmore will probably be eager to ring the changes in the team’s training and technique, but should be careful, because changes take time to gestate and can, initially cause problems. He should remember that the knives will be waiting to be unsheathed the moment his team has a bad loss, something that is inevitable considering the amount of cricket being played.
It is up to the PCB higher ups to support him to the hilt and, critically, to give him the players he wants. After all, if the team does not perform, his neck is on the line. Being an Australian, there can be no suspicion of undue favouritism or nepotism, the major reason for hiring an overseas coach. The PCB should let Whatmore select his assistant coaches, physios as well. He is the general who is leading his army to war. Let him win or lose on his own terms and with no excuses. Good luck, Dav. You are certainly going to need it.
Good year for Men’s Tennis
On the ATP Tour, the year’s first Masters 1000 event begins at Indian Wells in California. The BNP Paribas Open has a draw worthy of a Grand Slam event, with all four of the top players competing. Andy Murray, who finished runner up to Roger Federer at Dubai last week, is sporting a new attitude as well as a more powerful forehand. This helped him to a straight sets win over Novak Djokovic in the semifinals last week and although he lost to the masterful Federer in the final, this should give him some confidence.
Murray has, in the past, had a horrible body language on court and the loss of even one point would send him into a frenzy of self reproach. Ivan Lendl, his new coach, will have none of that. While his previous coaches would wring their knuckles in sympathy for their ward, Lendl has taken complete charge and one thing he will not tolerate is a crybaby. Things are looking up for Andy Murray.
Rafael Nadal probably hates the sight of hard courts. They are murder on his legs, knees and his punishing all-court style of play. Although he performs well on the surface, Nadal much prefers the soft forgiving red clay of Europe where he can slide into the ball and where he has that split second extra to hit his ground strokes. But Nadal’s biggest problem is the same that Federer has against him. He simply cannot beat Novak Djokovic. It is simply a case of strengths and weaknesses dovetailing. Nadal’s punishing forehand is a nightmare for Federer’s backhand. Instead of stepping in and hitting a firm slice, Federer stays back and rolls the ball back, setting it up perfectly for Nadal to hit a forcing shot. Nadal cannot get away with this tactic against Novak, who sits on the baseline and hammers the ball back, taking it early.
Federer on the other hand, fancies his chances against Novak. So that is the fascinating triangle where the top trio of tennis stands. Men’s tennis has never been stronger, with new players challenging the established order. This promises to be a very good year.
