After waiting in the wings for a long time, former Team India skipper Rahul Dravid, who made a significant contribution for the Indian National Cricket Team, sheds light on his debut game during India’s tour of England back in 1996. He has also thanked Sanjay Manjrekar, who somewhat responded with pun intended in his recent interview.
More often than not, Dravid has favoured his team by stitching crucial partnerships. He has bailed out his side whenever it was in dire straits. To add on, Dravid’s diligence has proven to be an inspiration for many from time to time.
Dravid, who is currently nursing India A and Under-19 teams, has made his Test debut under the leadership of Mohammad Azharuddin in June 1996 during the second Test against England at iconic Lord’s stadium.
Furthermore, in the drawn fixture, Dravid during his debut international game, slammed 95 off 267 balls while spending 363 minutes at the crease.
In between, his patient knock, Dravid found fence on six occasions and thus it paved a way for young Dravid to cement his spot in the national fold.
In that particular Test fixture, Sourav Ganguly has registered 131 off 301 as Jack Russell earned Man of the March award for his 124 and 38 in the second essay.
While responding to a question of Raunak Kapoor, Dravid reminisced about cricketing career and his Test debut.
Lucky plays its part: Rahul Dravid on his debut on India’s tour to England in 1996 –
The 46-year-old had emerged as a calming influence for Team India during his heydays. He shed light on his debut while admitting the fact of being lucky.
While dwelling into the game, Rahul has focused on his game to play a quintessential role for India.
“I think, you have got to acknowledge that and you’ve to accept that you’re lucky. I look at how I started my career. (As a player) I started in 1996 in Lord’s. And the only reason, I played that particular Test match was because Navjot Singh Sidhu decided to leave the tour. And, Sanjay Manjrekar got injured. Now, it’s easy I’ve played the amount of cricket to go back into 1996,” Dravid told during ESPNcricinfo’s Superstats show.
In response, cricketer-turned-commentator Manjrekar with his tongue-in-cheek comment said, “It was not actually an injury. I just wanted the world to see Rahul Dravid. And I have always been that kind of a guy.”
Manjrekar has represented India between 1987 and 1996 to feature in 74 ODIs and 37 Tests. He has recently picked India’s playing XI for South Africa in 2019 World Cup.
Dravid has represented India in 344 ODIs, 164 Tests and a solitary T20I. He bids adieu to cricket in March 2012.
Across formats, he has accumulated 24,208 runs in the international fold between 1996 and 2012.