Is there another batsman in the world who can be so woefully out of form, but at the same time have the mental resources to stick around so that the Divine Belly at the other end may do justice?
Uncle J Rod has suggested that Dravid be put out of his misery.
There was another man about whom similar suggestions were being made. He made a double hundred through the leg side. Some still say that Tendulkar epic in Sydney was pathetic. I say that genius reveals itself after being condemned to work.
No kamikaze for Dravid, and certainly no hemlock. He will tattoo his name on a scorecard somewhere before the series is over.
03 January 2008
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7 comments:
i dont see any player has more mental strength and aggression than him...
that despite being in this form and knowing what other will and are saying for his strike rate etc...he still kept his mind on the job and allowed the assurity of one end to VVS..is remarkable...
John,
A happy new year.
His grit is admirable but was excruciating to watch.
Happy New Year, Ottayan. Dravid's inning's reminded me of another innings by a reluctant opener. Sanjay Bangar at Leeds, partnering ironically enough, a fluent Dravid.
Well said about Dravid , John.
I like that imagery...Tattoo..
In the intervening days between the two tests, I recall commenting on one of the blogs that Dravid actually ended up perhaps playing more balls than any Indian in the MCG test and almost half the number of overs (or close to that).
For a man out of form, that's not a bad thing. OK, the runs didn't come, and should be the criteria, but I wonder how many out of form batsmen are able to play almost half the number of overs of their side's performance?
That gave me hope that the runs could be around the corner and he should now be settled back to his customary no. 3 slot....an important one for him and India. We need him there.
Right through his career, Dravid has always created an illusion of misery but ended up with the nickname of The Wall...sure, sometimes those weren't illusions, but it is clear thet even if the wall has aged and crumbled, we'll still see remanants of it...like Mohenjodaro and Harappa.
Hi Soulberry. I hope you've lifted the embargo on yourself.
I am a little ambivalent about Dravid for the number three spot. Why do you prefer him over Laxman at number three, on current form? Dravid can be a pretty good number five/six.
Something Laxman said yesterday: at humber three, you are setting the agenda as a batsman, at number six you're responding to a situation. Is there a batsman more adept at adapting to the situation? Provided we find a good partner for Jaffer, and I think Karthik's the man, Dravid must bat between Ganguly and Kumble.
John,
Laxman should be at No.3 He is the sort of sane strokemaker who can keep keep the score board intelligently. As we all know, attack is the best form of defense.
(BTW, Sehwag or Yuvi is not the answer- Sehwag is sort of a man who lives in his own world, Yuvi has a lot to prove)
Looks like no3 is difficult now...I just posted as much over at Golandaaz's.
Can't displace Laxman who appears to have settled in. But perth is Perth...I'd like to see Drav at 3 with Sehwag and DK opening (in place of jaffer and Dhoni) and Pathan too playing (in place of Yuvraj).
Gives us more bowling options and will strengthen the batting too...Yuvi and Dhoni are still busy with Padukone, and Jaffer is now keeping Sehwag out.
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