Former Indian cricketer and coach Rahul Dravid has always been regarded as one of India’s most technically sound batters. His solid defence and elegant stroke play made him one of the toughest batters to bowl to.
On Ashish Kaushik’s podcast Haal Chaal Aur Sawaal, Dravid reflected on balance at the crease and why shorter players often appear more natural.
“Gavaskar was a beautifully balanced player. I always remember, he always seemed to. There was a stillness when he stood, which is what I admired. I was always slightly taller, so I didn’t copy anything. I just stood in a way that made me feel uncomfortable,” he said.
Dravid compared several batting greats from different eras.
“Tendulkar again was very balanced. Shorter people have the advantage of looking more balanced because the centre of gravity is lower. That’s what they say. A lot of great batters over the years have been shorter people. Look at Gavaskar, or Tendulkar or a [Brian] Lara or a [Ricky] Ponting… going back to [Donald] Bradman. Kohli is short-ish. Virat Kohli might not like me calling him shortish, though,” he added.
He also spoke about the way batting has evolved with time in modern cricket.
“But today, as the game is changing and becoming a lot about power and hitting sixes, the reach of the taller guys is becoming an advantage. Physics will tell you. Kevin Pietersen, Kieron Pollard. Look at the guys who are batting these days, in T20s especially,” Dravid concluded.
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