Rahul Dravid, who is celebrating his 46th birthday on Friday, is considered one of the most well-behaved cricketers to have played the game. 'The Wall' is known as a thorough gentleman for his conduct on and off the pitch.
So, perhaps it is not surprising that Dravid is trending as an example of decent behaviour when some Indian cricketers have landed themselves in controversy for their crass and misogynist comments.
Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul are in the middle of this controversy after the duo appeared on a TV talk show. Hardik caused a massive outrage with his comments during the show which were termed ‘misogynist’ and ‘sexist’ by many. On the show, Pandya boasted about hooking up with multiple women and also how open he is about it with his parents.
The comments have landed Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul into much trouble with BCCI's Committee of Administrators (CoA) chief Vinod Rai even recommending a two-ODI ban on both the players.
As the controversy continued to grow, an old video of India's former captain Rahul Dravid started doing the rounds on social media. This video was shot for a famous show where Dravid fell victim to a mischievous prank. However, fans pointed out that Rahul Dravid's behaviour in even such a situation was a perfect example of how 'cricket stars should behave' with fans specially young women.
Back in 2010, Rahul Dravid was pranked by the show 'MTV Bakra'. A female journalist (actor Sayali Bhagat) supposedly came to interview Dravid all the way from Singapore. However, once the interview wrapped up, she tried to convince Dravid to marry her. At first, Dravid tried to convince the girl to change her mind and then tried to escape the room. He was interrupted by her fake father who wanted him to marry his daughter. Just when he was about to lose his cool, the show's team revealed the prank.
What stood out that Dravid. just like his batting, never let his guard down and the situation overwhelm him during the whole ordeal. He did not get angry and lose his cool or tried to take advantage of a supposedly vulnerable young woman. He handled it like a true gentleman.
Pandya, on the other hand, come out cocky and boastful during his appearance. While the nature of the chat show is to create controversy through the questions, Pandya did not try to take a higher road and instead looked too eager to show off his 'conquests'.
Several people on social media shared the video and asked players like Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul to take a lesson from The Wall's behaviour.
It is hard to imagine another Rahul Dravid, but the current crop of Indian cricketers may learn something from greats like him.
