Mumbai, March 09: Rahul Dravid belongs to that rare category of sportsmen who are lauded and admired not only by their own team-mates and fans but also by those of the opposition. As the legend says goodbye after a 16-year-long international career, we bring you a collection of heartfelt quotes from the cricketing world acknowledging the genius of the cricketer and the man.
Team-mates
Sachin Tendulkar
There was and is only one Rahul Dravid. There can be no other. I will miss Rahul in the dressing room and out in the middle. For someone with a record like his, no tribute can be enough.
VVS Laxman
I learn from and admire his consistency. It is a great learning process to bat with him. It definitely helps when I bat alongside Rahul; a guy who is so intense and is concentrating at all times kind of inspires you at the other end.
Sourav Ganguly
He's a champion at everything. I really admire him. I am very impressed with the way he approaches life.
Javagal Srinath
I have not seen him lose his temper. He has that uncanny skill of keeping his frustrations to himself. He hates to get out, though, and you can see the restlessness in him till he gets his act together in the next outing. He is the most hard-working guy in the side.
Suresh Raina
The Wall for the team but a shoulder for teammates. Impregnable for [the] opposition; a motivation for us. That's Rahul bhai. I got my ODI & Test cap from him.
The Opposition
Glenn McGrath
Dravid has been a class player for a long time now and we know his ability better than anyone. […] He's not like the other guys who love scoring off every ball, and there's no real weakness in his game either. He's mentally strong. You've just got to bowl well to him early on because he gets himself really set for a big innings once he is in.
Brett Lee
If [you] can't get along with Dravid, you're struggling in life.
Steve Waugh
Rahul is the kind of person who young cricketers can look up to not only because of his success but also because of the way he conducts himself. His remarkable career is proof that nice guys don’t finish last.
I am aware that many people see Rahul and me as similar cricketers, I am flattered because it’s good to be compared to a guy who has an average of over 57! It’s only now that people are recognising that Dravid has probably played more critical knocks than his great contemporaries.
Shoaib Akhtar
Even though Sachin is great, I have always found Rahul more solid and hard to get out. He has a solid defence and plays [fewer] shots than others. It is tough to get him as he makes [fewer] mistakes.
Chris Gayle
Dravid could play attacking cricket like me but I could never play like him.
Brian Lara
If I have to put anyone [in] to bat for my life, it’ll be [Jaques] Kallis or Dravid.
Matthew Hayden
All this going around is not aggression. If you want to see aggression on the cricket field, look into Rahul Dravid’s eyes.
Andrew Flintoff
He averages 58 and you don't do that if you are not as good as he is. We have to persevere and get past the big bat of his. He books himself in for bed and breakfast every single time he goes out to bat.
Kevin Pietersen (Dravid’s former RCB team-mate)
It's fantastic to be on the same park as him […] I like to watch players I respect, watch players who I feel privileged to be on the same field as. And I've seen how Rahul goes about his innings and that's something I want to get myself involved with.
Younis Khan
I was going through a rough patch and I happened to meet Dravid in the ICC Knockout Trophy and he advised me about batting and life and then the magic happened. Suddenly everything changed and I started playing well.
Former players
Sunil Gavaskar
He is the Iron Man of Indian cricket whose strength of character shines through in every move he makes on the field. He brings serenity to the crease that is so good for the nerves in the dressing-room. He also helps ease the tension away by the way he plays. He then proceeds to make the fastest of bowlers look easy to bat against.
John Wright
From a personal perspective, Rahul is one of the best men I've ever worked with. He always had a great awareness of what the team needed. In short, he's not only a great cricketer, but a great man.
Ian Chappell
Team in trouble? Whom do you turn to? Rahul Dravid!
Geoffrey Boycott
His nickname is 'The Wall'. He does take some getting past, doesn't he? He is a great example of how to play. And the tempo of his innings, he doesn't change at all. He loves batting and goes on and on. There is a difference between being good and great and surely Rahul is a great player. A wonderful player for India and playing when the chips are down is a true hallmark of a great cricketer.
Allan Border (On Dravid’s 233 in the Adelaide Test, 2003)
It does not get better than what Rahul Dravid did in this Test. His batting was outstanding. Everyone has already exhausted superlatives so I would not bother myself with any additional praise but you could be sure my admiration for him has grown tremendously.
