Confessions of a fan on Rahul Dravid's birthday

It’s a sunny day out there with clear blue skies and absolutely no chance of the rain gods making any interruption. A fantastic day for a cricket match. The balconies are getting occupied. People are lurking from windows. The pitch looks flat with gravel spread across the turf. Two of the fiercest rivals this summer are locking horns once again in a contest that has been largely one sided. The fearsome bowling attack has rattled the wood-works of the opposition batsmen on many occasions.

Leading the bowling pack is none other than the young and lethal left armer – Akram – who has demolished either the base of the stumps or batsmen’s toes with screeching in-swinging deliveries, going round the wicket. Key batsman and victim – Jammy, has a point to prove. He has absolutely no answers to Akram’s deliveries, getting out on six occassions this season.

The quest for supremacy in the family is on as the teams are out there on field. Akram is marking his bowling run up from his preferred round the wicket side. Taking guard is Jammy. Two empty cola bottle crates make up the stumps and are ready to take the blows. We welcome you all to this nerve-wrecking derby. Taking the commentary is Mrs. Surekha Jadhav from B-65, block # 3.

0.1 : Akram to Jammy, no run, 135.6 kmph, flatter, outside off, goes straight on and Jammy lets it go.

0.2 : Akram to Jammy, no run, 136.9 kmph, its a length ball that dips in slightly, Jammy covers the line with a firm forward defensive shot. Early signs of a gritty contest in the making.

0.3 : Akram to Jammy, no run, 144.2 kmph, a snorter right away heading to the crate – stumps, and this time its defended well in front. Jammy seems to have altered his batting technique.

0.4 : Akram to Jammy, no run, 142.5 kmph, pitched up, and the ball curves in sharply by hitting the gravel on the road. Jammy puts the bat forward but misses the line, a whisker…

Akram is uttering a few words as he is taking a few steps towards the bastman. Jammy stares back but quickly takes his guard.

0.5 : Akram to Jammy, no run, 139.1 kmph, straight and short of length this time, Jammy is taking this initial backfoot movement and covering the line well this time, punched back to the bowler.

Jammy seems to have altered his batting technique in this match.

0.6 : Akram to Jammy, no run, 148.6 kmph, whoa! Trademark delivery from good length curling in towards the stumps, going for the kill, but Jammy is up to the mark, presenting the full face of the bat by that slight initial trigger movement of the back-foot and shielding the spear.

Maiden Over. It’s an intense battle between the bat and ball. Glimpses of the Wall – Rahul Dravid in the style adopted by Jammy.

Nukkadwale Chacha: “Remember India’s tour of England, 2002? Dravid had this style of moving his back-foot across and covering the line first before moving the front foot to play the ball. He nullified the in-swing ball going into the stumps by moving his back-foot across. Dravid adapted well, scoring 3 tons, including a double century in overcast conditions that assisted the likes of Hoggard, Caddick, Harmison and Flintoff. Jammy is treading the same path.”

Well spotted by Nukkadwale Chacha.

Jammy went on to play a gritty knock in that innings and completely neutralized the lethal in-swinging deliveries of Akram by adapting that back and forth footwork style. In the rest of the matches played in the mohalla during the 2002 Diwali vacation, Jammy grew in confidence and played a memorable innings’ for his side, without getting out to Akram.

To the world, Rahul Dravid is one of the most classical Test batsmen ever to have graced the field of cricket. To Jammy, Dravid was a mentor, whom he could never meet. He learnt the nuances of batting just by watching him play. While he was intimidated by Akram’s bowling, he watched how Dravid coped up with swing bowling during India’s tour of England in the summer of 2002. By imitating his technique, adapting the focus and temperament, Jammy overcame the in-swinging demons of Akram. It may seem a small impact in the context of what Rahul Dravid has already given to the nation. To Jammy, Dravid gave him his best ever feat of childhood.

Jammy – a fine batsman and Akram – a superb bowler, are nicknames of two cricket crazy brothers who grew up playing gully cricket together (against each other most times).

Summer 2002, England: Rahul Dravid amassed 602 runs in 4-Test match series against England at a staggering average of 100.33.Diwali Vacation 2002, India: Jammy never got out again to those fast in-swinging deliveries bowled by his southpaw brother. And the rest, as they say, is history in the cricket records of a narrow lane of Vadodara.

Summer 2002 was exceptional for Rahul Dravid, and for Jammy as well, a small town fan who (like hundreds other) modelled his batting on the legendary No. 3 batsman of India.