5 occasions when Rahul Dravid lost his temper

Ask Anyone if former India’s talisman batsman Rahul Dravid, popularly known as ‘The Wall’ owing to his dependability and flawless technique, ever lost his temper on the field? The answer will either be “Never!” or “Ummm hardly!”.

Dravid’s mindset during his playing days was as refined and strong as his batting fundamentals. Everyone who followed the cricketer from the beginning to his retirement knows that no matter how heavy the banter is, Dravid would keep his calm, shut his ears, and continue to frustrate the bowlerˀs, who would desperately try to get into his skin.

A very famous instance that displayed Rahul Dravid’s on-field patience was in 2008 in an away series against Australia when the right-handed batsman kept blocking under heavy pressure before finally getting off the mark on the 41st delivery he played. The crowd gave him a standing ovation as soon as he began running to the non-striker’s end for his first run of the innings!

And this was just a one-off occasion. The Karnataka player seldom lost his temper or patience in his glorious career. However, human as he is, Dravid did lose his cool at times.

Cricket Cult lists out 5 memorable occasions when the world’s calmest batsman lost his temper:

1) Rahul Dravid once threw a chair in anger

There was an incident when the batsman got so livid that flung his chair. The cricketer’s wife Vijeta Singh had revealed this in an exclusive interview. She said that her husband’s former teammate Virender Sehwag had told her about it. The incident in question happened after India very badly lost a Test Match against England at home. Dravid had informed his wife about the poor performance of the team but had skipped the chair-throwing part, which Sehwag informed her later.

2) A mini-brawl with Shoaib Akhtar in CT 2004

Rahul Dravid had engaged in a tussle with former Pakistan paceman Shoaib Akhtar in a Challenger Trophy match in England. During one of Akhtar’s overs, the batsman attempted to run a double. But Akhtar seemed to have come in his way. This made Dravid lose his temper and he went up to Akhtar and asked him to stay out of his way. Before the matter got heated up, then Pakistan captain Inzamam Ul-Haq intervened and separated the duo. Dravid was the highest run-scorer for India in that match but his efforts had gone to vain as the Men in Blue lost to Pakistan.

3) Dravid gives it back to Mitchell Johnson in the 2013 IPL

Former Australian fast-bowler Mitchell Johnson, known for his verbal volleys that can easily irritate batsmen, once had an altercation with Rahul Dravid in the 2013 edition of the Indian Premier League. The incident in question took place in the Qualifier 2 match between Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Dravid, then Rajasthan Royals skipper, drove Johnson through mid-off for a four in the 3rd over of the innings. Following the shot, the pacer said a word or two to Dravid. This charged up Dravid, who flicked Johnson for a four in the very next ball. Then he went up to Johnson and said “you wanted to say something?”

4) Dravid hits out at Kieron Pollard at a press conference

This incident also took place in the fifth edition of the IPL in an encounter between Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians. Mumbai all-rounder Keiron Pollard ticked off the Royals skipper with his on-field behavior. However, Dravid did not show his anger during the match but hit out at Pollard without naming him at the post-match press conference. 

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Throughout Rajasthan’s star all-rounder Shane Watson’s stay in the middle, Pollard kept on mocking him. Even after his dismissal, Pollard not only gave him a fiery send-off but also headed towards the dug-out later and nagged the Aussie again. This made Watson leave the place. At the press conference, referring to Pollard, Dravid said a bowler sending off a batsman after dismissing him is an act of cowardice.

5) The Wall smashes his cap in anger in IPL 2014

In IPL 2014, Rahul Dravid had lost his cool in a do-or-die clash between Mumbai Indians (MI) and Rajasthan Royals (RR). MI had to chase down 190 in 14.3 overs in order to qualify for the play-offs. Dravid, who was the mentor of RR then, must have been confident of his team going through. However, some spectacular batting from Mumbai saw them level Rajasthan’s score in the stipulated number of overs. Batsman Aditya Tare then smashed a maximum and helped Mumbai get through. Extremely disgusted with his team’s efforts, Dravid threw his cap to the ground in anger.