The most famous cricket team, India, is known for its star studded batting line-up which includes the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid.
Having players of that calibre in one team
would be a dream for any captain. Dravid and Tendulkar are arguably the
finest batsmen Indian cricket has ever produced, even surpassing the
legendary Sunil Gavaskar and their stats are
a proof of that.
Never have such players existed, who are
so different in practice yet so successful. The duo share a massive
28876 ODI runs amongst them and are top run getter in the longest format
of the game.
Tendulkar is perhaps the most hyped
cricketer at the moment and has the largest fan following across the
world. Back at home people worship him and treat him as a “GOD”. The
38-year-old is a delight for sponsors and is always the
centre of attention.
The Little Master started playing cricket
as a medium pacer but soon realised that bowling is not his strong point
and thus focused all his energy towards batting. His pains paid off as
he was called into national side at age of
16.
He made his International debut in a match against India’s arch rivals Pakistan at Karachi in 1989. Imran Khan, renowned all-rounder and captain of Pakistan, saw great potential in Tendulkar and said that he is a legend in the
making.
The right-hander has been a regular in
Indian outfits since then and has been decimating bowling attacks for
past 22 years. Till recently, the batting Maestro has played in 180 Test
matches and averages 56.25.
Despite being of the same class as of
Tendulkar, Dravid can be considered as one of the most underrated
batsman. Unlike his countrymen, Dravid had to work day in and day out to
cement his place into the side.
Dravid also known as “The Wall” is not a public man and usually avoids media confrontation. He made his first appearance for India in 1996 at the home of cricket “Lords” in a match against England. The Wall scores at 52.56 runs
per innings.
What makes both Tendulkar and Dravid great
is that they never indulge in any altercation with another cricketer,
they let their bat do the talking for them.
The duo provides assistance to their
skipper in more than one way. Tendulkar is very handy when it comes to
bowling and has been used as a partnership breaker. While Dravid, has
one of the safest hands behind the wicket and can
also keep the wickets.
Both Dravid and Tendulkar have an
admirable technique and one can hardly find any flaw in their batting.
However, the Little Master is more attacking in his approach while The
Wall is defensively sounder.
Tendulkar opens in ODIs and bats at number
four in Tests, whereas Dravid has been a specialist at number three in
both formats of the game.
Albeit, he can play all the shots in the
book, the straight drive is Tendulkar’s trademark shot. He also likes to
pull the ball and is exceptionally good against spinners.
Dravid on the other hand is a master when
it comes to cut the ball. He rarely takes the aerial root and looks to
pierce the field by placing his shots. The middle-order batsman is
particularly strong off his pads as well.
Bowlers have little margin for error
against the duo as they have a wide range of shots and can improvise as
well. Recently though, English pacers found a way to keep them at bay.
English bowlers bowled full length deliveries,
enticing Tendulkar and Dravid to play their shots and with swinging
conditions, slips come into play.
Dravid’s immense concentration has proved
more than helpful in English conditions as the batsman has refrained
from playing such shots. However, the Little Masters seems to struggle
against James Anderson and Stuart Broad.
No matter who people consider is better,
one thing is certain and that is Tendulkar and Dravid both are masters
in their respective ways and will be remembered for a long time to come.
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