They were supposed to be India’s strengths-the threesome who would keep the Aussie quicks at bay and steer the country to safety Down Under. In recent years, Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid have built awesome reputations with their consistency at home and abroad. But in Australia, this Indian winter, it was a slightly different story. They looked ill-at-ease and scratchy against McGrath & Co. While Tendulkar and Ganguly redeemed their stature somewhat with substantive innings in the latter part of the tour, Dravid’s form deserted him totally. Mr Dependable seemed downright pathetic at the crease.
For the Karnataka batsman, once touted as the "find of the century" by Kapil Dev, a total of 93 runs in six Tests (avg 15.5) and 200 in six one-dayers (avg 33.33) was not in keeping with his image of a solid, steady player at the pivotal No. 3 position. India’s dismal show in Aussieland might be cited as a reason, but then Dravid’s string of low scores at the top of the order compounded the team’s woes. Not that Dravid...
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