CricDigs Blogs

Most tongues have already been set wagging ever since Kumble announced his somewhat sudden retirement. I would say sudden not because it wasn’t expected but simply because the manner in which it came was a more than just being unusual. However, Kumble’s retirement hasn’t left the Indian team in the kind of lurch some cricketing experts are making it out to be. His fitness had been fledging for some time now and it was only a matter of time before his body started weighing in more than his mind. But his retirement has had one very important impact. This is with regards to the Wall — Rahul Dravid. He and Kumble share many similarities.

First of all, both played for the same state, Karnataka. Both of them broke into the national team on the basis of consistent domestic performances and are counted among the nation’s most admired and respected cricketers. Even on the downside, Dravid and Kumble seem to have struck a series of bad or average performances over the last few matches in coherence with each other. Just a year back, it was difficult to imagine an Indian team without the presence of Dravid in the middle, protecting the middle order and scoring tons of runs. But ever since Dravid’s rather absurd stepping down from the captaincy and the T20 World Cup win under Dhoni, the Indian team has a new and renewed sense of urgency and good players seem to coming by from unexpected corners.

The current mantra of the team is simple. It really doesn’t matter what the averages or pedigree of a talked-about talent is. Only match-winning performances count. This is where Dravid has been a letdown ever since he gave up his captaincy. Most people would have hoped that letting go of captaincy would set his mind free and bring back the solidity to his batting, but Dravid’s problems persist.
Now, with Kumble’s retirement the onus is on Dravid to prove himself if he is still worthy of a test team spot. Two or three more failures and don’t be surprised if the media start asking the question, if Dravid should follow Kumble’s footsteps and end his career before being sacked by the selectors? Thus, the last of tests in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy become so crucial for Dravid.

I really don’t agree with this viewpoint of sacking Dravid that is being propagated by sport channels and cricketing experts. Even if Dravid isn’t in the best of form, can’t he be persisted with for some more period of time, at least for test cricket? What worthy replacements do we have to step in for someone as good as Dravid? Can the likes of Badrinath, Yuvraj or Raina be trusted with a number three spot in the test team? I feel not one of them are even a shadow of Dravid, even when he is struggling. His presence, his expertise and his ability to counter the toughest of times just like that of Tendulkar’s is the glue that is needed to hold the team together.