Rahul (bhaiya) Dravid : My Hero!

It has taken me long time to firm up my mind to write about my idol Rahul Dravid who I fondly refer to as Rahul Bhaiya. If I were asked to speak at length on anyone, I would say Rahul Bhaiya is one among very few I can go on and on about, right from taking references of his records, best innings, attributes, my experience of being with him during my days at Rajasthan Royals, etcetera.

I thought about a blog on him many times but always deferred it thinking it would pan out very emotional, all over the place, and very lengthy. I have never been sure about my projection of him in my blog because for me he is more than just a cricketer. Having read Rahul Dravid: The Timesless Steel and learning about intense love and respect for him in others that I finally decided and felt confident about the line I would take in this blog.

I too can rave about him a Cricketer, his batting, his contribution to the game, but more than that he has moved me as a person. His fundamentals and morals, which are very well projected in his game and on field persona, touched me the most that too at very early age. I remember praying for his good luck in his early days in international cricket in late 90s. I was in school back then. We did not have cable network at home so out of choice I would frequently visit nearby general store to have glimpses of his batting. Now, when I look back I can say without any exaggeration I barely managed to watch his innings at a stretch for more than 20-25 minutes.

I fell in love with his poise, his stance, his stroke play. I would dream about him doing exceptionally well every time he came out to bat. I would hate him getting out; I would wish for whole team to get out but him. I wanted him to be the only reason behind the success of Indian team. He was Cricket for me!

As years passed by, my passion for him did not subdue but my learning of his thinking and vision got better. I did not leave any opportunity to know what he had to say about the game and life in general. I started to like him more; my vision of sport and its spirit got better. I began to realize Cricket is a team’s sport. Not only I learnt about the spirit with which Rahul bhaiya went about his game but also found a great semblance of his thinking in my life. His passion, perseverance and ethics are worth admiring and imbibing.

Perhaps my love and respect for him was genuine that the dream I never dared to see turned real. I not only met him but also spent good 2 months with him on the ground, in the stadium, and in the player’s lounge. I was shell-shocked and spellbound for first few days of my role as media manager of Rajasthan Royals as I had to brush shoulders with Rahul Bhaiya every now and then.

His sight would have been enough but I was lucky to have him leave his seat and come forward to shake hands with me in our first meeting. It was simply the best moment of my life till then and to date. I had to brief him on his media interactions and I was fumbling and mumbling, eyes moist, moved by his largesse and humility.

Rahul Bhaiya for me is epitome of hard work and passion. He is someone every Indian or for that matter any young person can identify with. He of course had abundance of talent, but at the same time most difficult questions were asked of him compared to any other Cricketer of modern era. Had he been weak hearted he would have fizzled out a lot early in his career. But he was not to give up and then came to live an ascetic in him. He would meditate on the field in the cheer and choir by thousands of people in the crowd. He appeared calm as Kungfu master and incisive as tiger.  

As for millions of people, he has been my inspiration too. He inspires me to believe less in destiny and more in myself. He teaches me to have my foot on the ground and prepares me to grind. He is someone I swear by and would look up to all my life.

As anticipated, the blog has not turned out to be as envisaged. I did not wish to shower praise on him and rather talk about finer nuances of his personality and values he embodies. I would like to believe it is impossible for me to capture him fully in a single blog. With the hope I return to him with greater insights, I sight off. This is my short and humble tribute to a man of real steel, timeless steel Rahul (bhaiya) Dravid! He is my Hero, a word that he personally does not like to be associated with. For him, heroes are doctors and soldiers but for me he is no different from them.