Today, I am delighted to say the least. The moment I was waiting for, for what seems like an eternity, has finally come. Dravid has stepped down as captain of Team India. Finally, the last traitor has fallen. I know that me branding Dravid a traitor will irk many feelings. Especially, the ones from his hometown. However for once I appeal to all to stop wearing the regional goggle and take an honest look at Dravid's conduct after becoming the captain. Before becoming the captain, his conduct was incomparable. I myself was a big fan of Dravid, the a team player. However we need to analyze his career in two phases. One before becoming captain and the one after.
Dravid became captain under controversial circumstances. Ganguly, who was arguably India's most successful captain, was thrown out on the insistence of a foreign coach. However, blaming Chappell completely for the coup would not be justified. Many vested interests in BCCI played a major role in that. Dravid was Mr. Clean until then. The problem started when Dravid played along with Chappell's politics and gave in to all his cunning games. These games were not played on the ground but in the dressing room. He initially planned to throw out the former captain who had stood behind him in tough times and then the players who had supported the former captain. Even after throwing out Ganguly, he persisted with his politics to keep him out of the team. However, Ganguly was far too strong for a person like Dravid and he returned. That too in what style! Maharaj hit back-to-back half centuries in South Africa to save a hopeless team in South Africa.
If we thought that Dravid would accept him in the team for the sake of the team after his good knocks, we couldn't be more wrong. He persisted with his tactics and continued to support Chappell in his evil plans. Finally all the hard work put in by Chappell paid dividends and Team India crashed out of the World Cup in the very first round. Chappell had to go but he didn't leave until he fired his last salvo. The coach who was supposed to strategize and be the real captain of Team India for the World Cup blamed the seniors for the defeat. He alleged that they didn't allow the captain to implement his decisions. This allegation was quite hilarious as the captain had always been spineless and never implemented any of his own decisions. The coach was the one calling shots all this time. Dravid in his usual manner didn't want to take responsibility for the defeat and blamed his batsmen for their dismal show. Thus displaying that he was never man enough to take the blame but would always be ready to shine in the light of victory. He was only concerned about how history would judge him, just him.
His latest decision to step down demonstrates the same. Team India had a successful tour of England. However Dravid couldn't care less, all he was concerned about was his personal form. He doesn't want to go down in history books as a player who didn't retire in good form. Whether his stepping down now will affect Team India adversely must be the last thing on his mind. Sometimes I feel that even Azhar was a more selfless captain than Dravid. He sure has been alleged for match fixing but he played selflessly for the team. Seldom did I get the feeling that he was playing for his own records. I had heard that power corrupts, however there could be no better example of this than the 'The Wall' himself. From a selfless team player to a spineless, insecure and plotting captain it has been a long journey for Dravid. This hopefully would be a beginning of a new era for Team India. The last traitor has fallen.
