Four Rare Instances When Rahul Dravid Lost His Temper

Former Indian captain Rahul Dravid has fulfilled plenty of roles during his international career — and even after it. From a captain, India’s mainstay in the middle-order, coach, and mentor — Rahul Dravid has been nothing short of an asset to Indian cricket. The 45-year-old made his international debut in 1996 — and went on to play till 2011.

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While he has starred in 344 ODIs, Tests were his forte, in which he accumulated over 13,000 runs in 164 fixtures. And Dravid’s calmness has played a massive part in remaining level-headed on his way to greatness — and grooming youngsters.

However, there were times that even as composed a man as Rahul Dravid lost his cool. Perhaps, it is indeed not easy to hold on to the same demeanour for any person at all times amid the tumultuous times.

We take a look at four instances in which Rahul Dravid dished out his anger:

Rahul Dravid versus Shoaib Akhtar:

The hallmark of a fast bowler has often been to engage in some verbal wars give a stare to the batsmen. And Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar has usually done it. In the 2004 Champions Trophy, the Rawalpindi Express locked horns with Rahul Dravid, but the right-handed batsman did not hold back either.

When Dravid was sprinting between the wickets, Shoaib Akhtar tried to block his path, but the batsman somehow reached safely. With Akhtar unsuccessful in discomforting his counterpart, he mouthed off. However, Rahul Dravid began walking up to him and faced him head-on. Pakistan skipper Inzamam-Ul-Haq stepped in and separated them.

Rahul Dravid labels Kieron Pollard as a “coward”:

In the IPL 2013, mighty West Indian all-rounder Kieron Pollard hurled abuses at Shane Watson as he took a catch off Pragyan Ojha to dismiss him. Shane Watson was playing for Rajasthan Royals that time while Kieron Pollard was with the Mumbai Indians. Hence, as Watson departed for 19, Pollard had a lot to say to him.

The incident got ugly to the point that the officials had to intervene to stop it and let the game proceed. In the post-match press conference, Rajasthan captain Rahul Dravid called Pollard’s behaviour as that of cowardice. Mumbai eventually beat Rajasthan by 14 runs and also lifted the title for the first time that year.

Rahul Dravid throws his cap on the ground:

A year later, Rajasthan and Mumbai engaged in the final game of the league stage in Mumbai where the latter pulled off a stunning jailbreak. The defending champions required 190 from only 14.3 overs to sneak into the playoffs. As unlikely as it seemed, Corey Anderson set the tone for a stunning victory.

Ambati Rayudu scored 30 off 10 deliveries while Aditya Tare smashed a last-ball six to get Mumbai storming to the playoffs. Rohit Sharma’s men qualifying for the playoffs meant that it was the end of the road for Shane Watson’s boys as Rahul Dravid hammered his cap on the ground while at the dugout.

Rahul Dravid throwing a chair in disgust:

England visited India in 2006 to play three Tests and seven ODIs. India easily won the second Test after the first resulted in a draw and remained favourites in Mumbai to clinch the series. However, captain Andrew Flintoff brought his top-notch game in the final Test.

Flintoff’s fifty along with Owais Shah’s and Andrew Strauss’ hundred enabled the tourists to put 400 in the first innings. They secured a 121-run lead and bowled out India for only 100 in the fourth innings in defence of 313.

The defeat made Dravid, the Indian skipper lose his cool and slam the chair in disgust. It was Rahul Dravid’s wife Vijeta, who disclosed the incident in detail through her column in ESPN Cricinfo.

“He has dealt with all that goes on in cricket because he can separate the game and the rest of his life and put things in perspective. No matter what was happening in his cricket, at home he is a husband, father, family man. He has never said, “Oh, I’ve had a bad day.” He wouldn’t speak about his work unless asked. Other than dropped catches.

“Only once, I remember, he returned from a Test and said, “I got a bit angry today. I lost my temper. Shouldn’t have done that.” He wouldn’t say more. Many months later, Viru [Sehwag] told me that he’d actually thrown a chair after a defeat to England in Mumbai.

“He’d thrown the chair, Viru said, not because the team had lost but because they had lost very badly,” she wrote.

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