Rahul Dravid

Profile

It's hard to plot Rahul Dravid on the graph of cricketing greats. There has rarely been a historic Indian win without a vital contribution from 'The Wall', yet, playing in the Tendulkar era, his achievements have been eclipsed by the blinding presence of the 'Little Master'.

One of three prominent Karnataka cricketers to make their mark in the 90s, along with Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath, Dravid seemed like he was born out of a batting text book with a strikingly "copybook" technique. In an age where batsmen were innovating and tweaking the norm as the game evolved, Dravid stuck by the methods that he was blooded with.

His earliest Test impact of note following a 95 on debut was against South Africa in 1997, when he backed his maiden century (148) with a half-century to lead India to a rare away draw. A series of impressive knocks helped cement the foundation of 'The Wall'. A lack of flamboyance was his lone limitation during his formative years. Whilst effective in Tests, it often frustrated fans in limited overs. A metamorphosis took place during the 1999 World Cup, beyond which Dravid's batting became a marvellous sight to behold in all forms of the game. By 2002, he successfully shed his defensive style and no longer seemed shadowed by the famed Tendulkar-Ganguly opening duo. Since then, the Number 3 batsman carved his own niche as India's batting anchor. Now, a decade and a half later, he is the only Indian batsman, barring Tendulkar, to have never been dropped from the Test side since his debut.

Following the match-fixing controversy, he was appointed deputy to captain Sourav Ganguly and the added responsibility egged Dravid to greater consistency. He notably played a vital supporting role to VVS Laxman in India's historic defeat of an all-conquering Australia in 2001. By 2004, he had scored centuries against every Test-playing nation. Captaincy duty soon arrived but the spotlight repulsed him. It also affected his ODI form and after a poor 2007 World Cup he relinquished the armband to focus on his batting. Consequently, he was dropped from ODIs and left out in the cold for 2 years.

Still, his position in the classic format remained untouched, unquestioned. Few could match his Test achievements, which remained consistent as ever, vindicating him even when people around were losing faith. But Rahul Dravid battles on tirelessly, the epitome of an unsung hero in the annals of world cricket.

Fast Facts

• Rahul Dravid was the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2000; while in 2004, he was named the ICC Test Player and the Player of the Year.
• He became the first batsman to score a century in every Test playing nation.
• He was the second Indian behind Sunil Gavaskar and the fifth overall to record more than 90 consecutive Tests for a team.
• Dravid is the only player to have featured in more than 80 century stands (all formats), which is a record.
• In ODIs, he is the only player to have featured twice in triple century stands.
• Dravid went on to be the second player to win a Test match in every Test playing nation. Inzaman-ul-Haq was the first to do so.
• In the 1999 Cricket World Cup, he was the leading run-scorer in the tournament with 461 runs.

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Against All Teams Australia Bangladesh Bermuda Cape Cobras Chennai Super Kings Deccan Chargers Delhi Daredevils England Guyana Highveld Lions ICC World XI Ireland Kenya Kings XI Punjab Kolkata Knight Riders Mumbai Indians Namibia Netherlands New Zealand Otago Volts Pakistan Rajasthan Royals Scotland South Africa Southern Redbacks Sri Lanka United Arab Emirates Victorian Bushrangers West Indies Zimbabwe

Statistics

Show:

• Batting Bowling Fielding Captaincy

	Matches	Innings	Runs	NO	Avg.	SR	100's	50's
Test	149	257	12027	29	52.75	42.39	31	59
ODI	339	313	10765	40	39.43	71.19	12	82
IPL	43	37	898	3	26.41	122.67	0	4
CLT20	9	8	234	2	39	108.83	0	1

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Career

Span:

Test:

1996-2010

ODI:

1996-2009

IPL:

2008-2010

CLT20:

2009-2010

Test

Debut:

India Vs England at Lord's, London - Jun 20, 1996

Last played:

India Vs South Africa at Kingsmead, Durban - Dec 26, 2010

ODI

Debut:

India Vs Sri Lanka at The Padang, Singapore - Apr 03, 1996

Last played:

India Vs West Indies at New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg - Sep 30, 2009

IPL

Debut:

Royal Challengers Bangalore Vs Kolkata Knight Riders at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore - Karnataka - Apr 18, 2008

Last played:

Royal Challengers Bangalore Vs Deccan Chargers at Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai - Apr 24, 2010

CLT20

Debut:

Royal Challengers Bangalore Vs Cape Cobras at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore - Karnataka - Oct 08, 2009

Last played:

Royal Challengers Bangalore Vs Chennai Super Kings at Kingsmead, Durban - Sep 24, 2010