Sanjay Manjrekar puts Dravid's ODI sacking in Perspective
Sanjay Manjrekar puts Dravid's ODI sacking in Perspective
Rahul Dravid's inclusion in the first place was something I could not quite understand. I thought it was a panic reaction to India being bounced out of the World T20 and it was mainly some protection to Suresh Raina, who was the No 3 for India.
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Rahul Dravid PIC/GETTY IMAGES |
The selectors turned to Dravid to save them from the short-pitched deliveries which was one of the main reasons why India were knocked out. That was something the Indian selectors took to heart.
I was not wholeheartedly in favour of Dravid's inclusion because I thought it was a backward step; a convenient step. When you have committed to young players like Raina, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and others, who have a problem with certain deliveries, then the coach has to work on it. They have to try and overcome the weakness by playing in the middle rather than quickly finding someone else.u00a0
I'm not too disappointed that Dravid is out, because the way forward is to stick with the young players and make the most of it.
Dravid has been brilliant over the years the man for a crisis. He showed typical commitment in Sri Lanka and South Africa and it is unfortunate for him that he has been left out again. But, when I look at Indian cricket on the whole, maybe this is the right step. When you are committed to the youth of India, make sure you make the best out of it.
By excluding Dravid for this one-day series against Australia, the selectors (headed by K Srikkanth) have accepted that they made a mistake in the first place. It's unfair to bring in someone for a few one-day internationals and leave him out.
Also, I don't think the youngsters were given enough time out there to sort out their problems. It was only a matter of three to four innings that Raina was found out. The selectors quickly turned to Dravid and put Raina down to No 5 or 6. I think you should give the youngsters little more time.
This is where the other entities which are supposed to take care of Indian cricket and its talent, like the coach andu00a0 selectors, have to make sure that they try and get the best from what they have committed themselves to.u00a0Chopping and changing is the easiest thing to do, but generally not the right way to go about things. I think that is what they did conveniently get Dravid and protect Raina. But now they have realised that the more sensible way is to look forward.
Dravid has been given a raw deal. In the end, you've got to feel for him.
