Last week, one of the all time greats Rahul Dravid of Indian cricket, called it a day. Rahul Dravid was a favorite of the intellectuals and glowing tributes were written on blogs and newspapers. In those tributes, I sensed a feeling of resentment towards another great of Indian cricket, the little master, Sachin Tendulkar.
Maybe they were resentful of the fact that had it not been for Tendulkar, Dravid would have ended his career on the top of the batters list. Or maybe they were resentful because Dravid, who was a key part of famous wins, never got his due under the shadow of the master. Or maybe they were resentful of Tendulkar's prodigious talent, while Dravid, a zen master with arguably half the talent reached so near him.
Tendulkar though has a great flaw (in the eyes of the pundits) that his famous performances came in losing causes. Dravid, on the other hand, was the reason why India won famous victories in Australia, England, Pakistan, the West Indies. The reason why Indian cricket was ranked number one for a brief period. Rahul, they say, who has scored better in tougher overseas conditions, has been denied his glory.
Part of it is true. What they ignore is that Indian cricket is a key part of the narrative of new India and though the phrase has been used often, it was Tendulkar who had to carry the burden of the billion dreams. A burden, he carried with courage and full awareness. Dravid was probably lucky to have been kept under "lesser"scrutiny to an extent. To his credit, he kept pace with Tendulkar all the way. It was not unlike Frodo (Tendulkar), who had to carry the burden of the ring all through the journey, and Samwise (Dravid) who had to get in action in the final act and snatch the ring to bury it in the inferno.
In a world where winning is everything, what they also forget is that we watched the losses as well. The losses where Tendulkar performed were heartbreaking, but they gave us honour. And I would argue were every bit as dramatic as the wins. Whether it was the league match in the 96 World Cup in Mumbai against Australia or the Test match in Chennai against Pakistan, we were there till the very end. They were honourable defeats. More often than not, it was one man vs the rest. The performances were so stupendous that I can imagine other team members would have been in awe, losing their bearings and not performing themselves. (Something I have begun to notice happening with AR Rahman's soundtracks, they are so amazing but the movies are nowhere close, like Rang de Basanti, Raavan and Rockstar).
To me, Tendulkar was the ultimate mercenary, the ultimate zen master, the ultimate gladiator. His defiance brought the team closer to those famous wins. We may have lost those matches, but we believed we could win. Dravid was the perfect counter foil. The opposition who would have concentrated bulk of their energy on Tendulkar (atleast in the first half of their careers) would have to contend with the Dravid once Tendulkar would have been dismissed. Though Dravid is no doubt in his own league, the intellectuals are doing a disservice to both by underplaying Tendulkar's role in Dravid's success.
As this dramatic phase of Indian cricket comes towards its sunset, there will no doubt be a lot of discussion on this. Powerful stuff that binds the nation together.
Maybe they were resentful of the fact that had it not been for Tendulkar, Dravid would have ended his career on the top of the batters list. Or maybe they were resentful because Dravid, who was a key part of famous wins, never got his due under the shadow of the master. Or maybe they were resentful of Tendulkar's prodigious talent, while Dravid, a zen master with arguably half the talent reached so near him.
Tendulkar though has a great flaw (in the eyes of the pundits) that his famous performances came in losing causes. Dravid, on the other hand, was the reason why India won famous victories in Australia, England, Pakistan, the West Indies. The reason why Indian cricket was ranked number one for a brief period. Rahul, they say, who has scored better in tougher overseas conditions, has been denied his glory.
Part of it is true. What they ignore is that Indian cricket is a key part of the narrative of new India and though the phrase has been used often, it was Tendulkar who had to carry the burden of the billion dreams. A burden, he carried with courage and full awareness. Dravid was probably lucky to have been kept under "lesser"scrutiny to an extent. To his credit, he kept pace with Tendulkar all the way. It was not unlike Frodo (Tendulkar), who had to carry the burden of the ring all through the journey, and Samwise (Dravid) who had to get in action in the final act and snatch the ring to bury it in the inferno.
In a world where winning is everything, what they also forget is that we watched the losses as well. The losses where Tendulkar performed were heartbreaking, but they gave us honour. And I would argue were every bit as dramatic as the wins. Whether it was the league match in the 96 World Cup in Mumbai against Australia or the Test match in Chennai against Pakistan, we were there till the very end. They were honourable defeats. More often than not, it was one man vs the rest. The performances were so stupendous that I can imagine other team members would have been in awe, losing their bearings and not performing themselves. (Something I have begun to notice happening with AR Rahman's soundtracks, they are so amazing but the movies are nowhere close, like Rang de Basanti, Raavan and Rockstar).
To me, Tendulkar was the ultimate mercenary, the ultimate zen master, the ultimate gladiator. His defiance brought the team closer to those famous wins. We may have lost those matches, but we believed we could win. Dravid was the perfect counter foil. The opposition who would have concentrated bulk of their energy on Tendulkar (atleast in the first half of their careers) would have to contend with the Dravid once Tendulkar would have been dismissed. Though Dravid is no doubt in his own league, the intellectuals are doing a disservice to both by underplaying Tendulkar's role in Dravid's success.
As this dramatic phase of Indian cricket comes towards its sunset, there will no doubt be a lot of discussion on this. Powerful stuff that binds the nation together.
