Legendary Rahul Dravid acknowledged that sometimes a little luck can have a big impact on the outcome of big matches, citing India’s heartbreaking defeat in the ODI World Cup final to Australia and his team’s sensational triumph from a precarious position against South Africa in the T20 World Cup final. India had reached the ODI World Cup final last year on a 10-match winning streak, but when the tournament’s best team came up against Australia in the title clash, nothing worked.
Six months later, captain Rohit Sharma and Dravid combined to complete the task at hand. A formidable South Africa stood between them and the trophy, but luck smiled on them. Having learned lessons from the incredible ups and downs, Dravid recalled on Wednesday how crucial it was for the team to stick to the stereotypical process and hope that luck favoured them against the Proteas in Barbados on June 29.
“I had time to reflect on it. I had time to reflect on a lot of things that we’ve done. You realise that sometimes you have to do a lot of these things, you have to go through the process, you have to get everything right,” said Dravid, who was voted for the Life Time Achievement honour during the Ceat Cricket Rating Awards.
“Sometimes at the end of the day, you need a bit of luck. (Against South Africa in the T20WC final)… 30 balls to go, 30 runs to go. (It was a matter of) unbelievable execution, unbelievable calmness from Rohit. “We didn’t focus on what we needed to do but we needed a guy who could keep his foot an inch from the line. Sometimes (it’s) skill,” he said without mentioning Suryakumar Yadav’s juggling act on the ropes to complete David Miller’s dismissal.
That catch tilted the match in India’s favour.
Dravid then recalled how India came close to dismissing Travis Head in the ODI World Cup final but the opener relied on his tremendous luck to hit a match-winning century, single-handedly crushing a billion hopes.
“On November 19… I remember whatever it was, we hit Travis Head’s bat 15 times, he didn’t touch a single ball. You know, sometimes things can go your way but you have to stick to the process,” said the plain-spoken Dravid, who returned to focusing on the basics.
Dravid retired as India coach after the title triumph.
Praising the strength of India’s bench and ability to consistently produce high-quality cricketers, Dravid said the next generation of players have successfully carried forward the legacy of the ‘Fab Five’.
Dravid himself, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Virender Sehwag and VVS Laxman were part of the Fab-five that enthralled cricket fans globally.
“I left in 2011-12. These players have carried on the legacy. If you look at the success we’ve had over the last 12 years in all three formats of the game, the time since we left has been absolutely phenomenal,” he said.
“It’s very easy, clearly in a lot of rankings, we’re always ranked 1 or 2… we’re always up there with anybody. To be able to go out and win that, just the type of cricket we play, the skill level of some of our players, the way they approach the game, it’s great,” he said.
Dravid hoped that Team India would continue to be successful in the coming years.
“I have no doubt that this generation of players, led by the likes of Rohit and Surya and the (other) guys who are coming through in all formats of the game, will only continue to do that in the future,” he said.
Dravid said that while Indian cricketers are now brave and confident, they also have a world-class infrastructure to back up their skills.
“A lot of them are really brave. The confidence of a young Indian, and I’m not just talking about cricketers, is just great. It warms your heart so much. The opportunities that young Indians have today… they just don’t exist anywhere else in the world. Even when you’re growing up, sometimes you feel like you could have your talent and your skills, but sometimes you didn’t have the support or the infrastructure to be able to achieve your dreams.”
“Today, no Indian can say that. They all have great infrastructure, great support and it shows in the way they behave and expect the best from themselves.”
Dravid said Indian players now see themselves as leaders and that was a big change in terms of thinking.
“Young India is looking forward to being world class, to being a world leader, and that’s a phenomenal change from when I was young,” he said.
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