Should Rahul Dravid retire now???

[Lord]

Pujara deserves his place,but IMO he deserves it ahead of Raina n Yuvraj,both Raina n Yuvraj has mediocre FC averages n only been selected coz of thier ODI exploits,which is dangerous thing to do.I thought they would've learnt from Yuvi episode,but clearly they didnt.lets hope Raina takes his chance though

[Hell Raiser]

Not in good form right now. Even mithun has scored more runs than him in this series. But he shouldn't retire right now. He is a class player, it won't be long before he starts scoring runs again and moreover I don't think we have a player who can take his position right now. And India do need him for the all important South africa tour.

[The Dark Horse]

No way!

[Show_stopper]

Has been very very poor for the last 3.5 years or so. Recent Test series against SL at home being the exception. I'll try to posts the stats if I can get them. Infact here is his record against all teams except Bangladesh for the last 4 years: http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/player/28114.html?class=1;filter=advanced;opposition=1;opposition=2;opposition=3;opposition=4;opposition=5;opposition=7;opposition=8;orderby=default;spanmax1=05+Aug+2010;spanmin1=05+Aug+2006;spanval1=span;template=results;type=allround I'm sorry Outsider..I think the stats I've posted are much more relevant. You can't factor in performances against Bangladesh when a guy has been consistently poor for 4 years now with an average of just 37. He should have been removed a year ago.

[The Outsider]

Has been very very poor for the last 3.5 years or so. Recent Test series against SL at home being the exception. I'll try to posts the stats if I can get them.

Averages 65 in the last 12 tests with 4 centuries and 5 half centuries. http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/player/28114.html?class=1;spanmin1=15+Dec+2008;spanval1=span;template=results;type=batting;view=series

[Show_stopper]

Clearly its not just a question of "form" anymore, is it? Seems to be on a continuous downward spiral.

[The Outsider]

Yeah sure, make selections on the basis of how someone did 3-4 years back and ignore the last and relevant last year and a half. Makes perfect sense.

[yoda]

Laxman before Dravid

[jusarrived]

we need Raina to settle down before replacing any other senior . I would like to see Dravid , Tendulkar & VVS play for another 2 years at least ,which is possible . Dravid never liked slow pitches , so not surprising hes not doing well here .

[The Outsider]

Laxman before Dravid

LOL! Laxman averages 60 over the last 30 test matches!

[King Tendulkar]

Is this joke of a thread still going:hysterical:

[asterix]

Average!! Average!! Average!! While Sachin is expected to make hundreds every match..Sehwag is expected to make big hundreds every match..

[Show_stopper]

@ Outsider Yeah it does make perfect sense actually. Its not about how he did 3-4 years ago but his performance over the last 4 years i.e, from Aug 06 till Aug 10. Big difference. We all know India have been playing mostly at home or SL for the past 2 years. Yes I realize Dravid might average around the mid 40's when you consider this period...but try comparing his stats with those of Sachon and Sehwag or even Laxman during the same period. I'm sure the first 2 would be averaging in the mid 50's, if not 60's. That should put Dravid's so-called "form" into perspective. At the end of the day we don't need numbers to answer the question the thread is posing..How many good innings of Dravid can you remember over the last 3 years? There was the 93 @ Perth and couple of great knocks last year when SL visited us. 3 knocks in 3 years? Thats not good enough. We can actually make out the increased burden on Sehwag,Sachin & Laxman. It is very poor for any batsman and abysmal for someone who is bracketed among the 'Fab Four'.

[cowboysfan]

Dravid averages just 34 in lanka,i really cant figure out why he struggles over there.maybe the slowness of the pitches bother him.

[The Outsider]

^ Dravid went through a poor patch for a couple of years. Happens with every batsman. Dravid is a bonafide great of the game, one of the best batsman India has produced and deserved a long rope during that time, which he got correctly. Once back in form he scored a hundred against England, had a wonderful tour of New Zealand, and had a superb series against Sri Lanka in India. He was also in great touch during the Ranji matches. Over the last year and a half, he averages 65 and has scored 4 test hundreds and 5 half centuries in 12 tests. Even in this series he has not looked out of place. He was looking very good at Galle and ran himself out, did a decent job in the second innings before hitting a half volley straight to the fielder and in the first innings in this test was again in superb touch till he inexplicably missed a straight one from Mathews. These things happen in cricket, you don't drop a great batsman on the basis of one test series, when before that he was scoring by the tons over the last 18 months. There are plenty of good innings he has played in the meanwhile besides the ones you mentioned. Scored a century against England, scored 4 half centuries in 5 innings in New Zealand including match saving efforts at Napier. Bottom line is that it's absurd to drop someone averaging in the 60s over the last 18 months because of a couple of failures.

[b555]

this series he just has been unlucky thats all i can say

[Online]

^ Dravid went through a poor patch for a couple of years. Happens with every batsman. Dravid is a bonafide great of the game, one of the best batsman India has produced and deserved a long rope during that time, which he got correctly. Once back in form he scored a hundred against England, had a wonderful tour of New Zealand, and had a superb series against Sri Lanka in India. He was also in great touch during the Ranji matches. Over the last year and a half, he averages 65 and has scored 4 test hundreds and 5 half centuries in 12 tests. Even in this series he has not looked out of place. He was looking very good at Galle and ran himself out, did a decent job in the second innings before hitting a half volley straight to the fielder and in the first innings in this test was again in superb touch till he inexplicably missed a straight one from Mathews. These things happen in cricket, you don't drop a great batsman on the basis of one test series, when before that he was scoring by the tons over the last 18 months. There are plenty of good innings he has played in the meanwhile besides the ones you mentioned. Scored a century against England, scored 4 half centuries in 5 innings in New Zealand including match saving efforts at Napier. Bottom line is that it's absurd to drop someone averaging in the 60s over the last 18 months because of a couple of failures.

I could not have said it better myself

[yoda]

we are not talking about dropping. people retire even when they are performing fine. it is not always about stats. one gets tired of watching the same players over and over again, plus younger players deserve a chance as well.

[The Outsider]

we are not talking about dropping. people retire even when they are performing fine. it is not always about stats. one gets tired of watching the same players over and over again' date=' plus younger players deserve a chance as well.[/quote'] These are professional cricketers out there to make a living, fame, and a career. Just because some people have got 'tired of watching' top notch performances and excellence in the field, doesn't mean they should quit their careers. As for youngsters, there is one open slot at the moment which has not been filled effectively and permanently for the last 2 years. Once that slot is settled, the next one can be filled and so on......

[Manny_Pacquiao]

we are not talking about dropping. people retire even when they are performing fine. it is not always about stats. one gets tired of watching the same players over and over again' date=' plus younger players deserve a chance as well.[/quote'] wow. quite possibly the most pathetic reason i have ever heard for wanting to a player to retire. "i am bored of watching him play over and over again" :haha::haha: then don't watch. who is forcing you. let the real fans watch the best players representing the country