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Tuesday, July 04, 2006
New India and Good Old Dravid
I got into cricket journalism by accident in 2001 when I joined Wisden, and have two more months to go before I leave Cricinfo. They're shifting to Bangalore and I wish to stay in Mumbai, so I'm quitting to write full-time. It's been a heady trip, and my stint here has coincided with one of Indian cricket's most fascinating phases, as it has stretched and tried to reinvent itself. There were times when we'd get rather excited and start speaking up the "New India," a phrase I might have come up with in a cricketing context. Wisden Asia Cricket did a cover story with that title in its first few months, the idea of which, if I remember correctly, originated with me.
Well, I'm no longer sure about this New India, and I wonder if we make too much of it sometimes. But one thing I am sure of is Rahul Dravid's place in Indian cricketing history. He's our greatest batsmen when it comes to winning matches, our greatest batsman when it comes to overseas performances, part of the pantheon of great Indian batsmen along with Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar. And it's been a privilege to be following cricket at a time when he has been at his best. Yes, there's been some great cricket from Australia as well, in these years, but Dravid's furrow has been lonelier, and a far greater test of character.
So here's my last piece in Cricinfo, on my favourite cricketer by far: "Rahul Dravid: Transcending History."
Well, I'm no longer sure about this New India, and I wonder if we make too much of it sometimes. But one thing I am sure of is Rahul Dravid's place in Indian cricketing history. He's our greatest batsmen when it comes to winning matches, our greatest batsman when it comes to overseas performances, part of the pantheon of great Indian batsmen along with Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar. And it's been a privilege to be following cricket at a time when he has been at his best. Yes, there's been some great cricket from Australia as well, in these years, but Dravid's furrow has been lonelier, and a far greater test of character.
So here's my last piece in Cricinfo, on my favourite cricketer by far: "Rahul Dravid: Transcending History."
